• 


A    STRANGE 
DISAPP  EARANC  E 


BY 


ANNA  KATHARINE  GREEN 

AUTHOR  OF   "  THB   LKAVENWORTH    CASE,"  "  THH  FILIGREE  BALL,"   "  THE 
MILLIONAIRE  BABY,"  KTC. 


NEW  YORK 
A.  WESSELS  COMPANY 


COPYRIGHT  BY 

O.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

1879 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PACK 

I — A  NOVEL  CASE <  5 

II — A  FEW   POINTS 17 

III — THE  CONTENTS  OF  A  BUREAU  DRAWER       .        .  35 

IV — THOMPSON'S  STORY  .......  47 

V — A  NEW  YORK  BELLE      ...  56 

VI — A  BIT  OF  CALICO 69 

VII — THE  HOUSE  AT  THE  GRANBY  CROSS  ROADS        .  82 

VIII — A  WORD  OVERHEARD 106 

IX — A  FEW  GOLDEN  HAIRS 118 

X — THE  SECRET  OF  MR.  BLAKE'S  STUDIO    .        .        .124 

XI — LUTTRA 147 

XII — A  WOMAN'S  LOVE 169 

XIII — A  MAN'S  HEART 191 

XIV — MRS.  DANIELS  .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .  202 

XV — A  CONFAB •  207 

XVI — THE  MARK  OF  THE  RED  CROSS      ....  212 

XVII— THE  CAPTURE 232 

XVIII — LOVE  AND  DUTY 246 

XIX — EXPLANATIONS 261 

XX — THE  BOND  THAT  UNITES        .  273 


A   STRANGE   DISAPPEARANCE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

A    NOVEL    CASE. 

"HTVALKING  of  sudden  disappearance^ 
-*•  the  one  you  mention  of  Hannah  in 
that  Leavenworth  case  of  ours,  is  not  the  only 
remarkable  one  which  has  come  under  my  di- 
rect notice.  Indeed,  I  know  of  another  that  in 
some  respects,  at  least,  surpasses  that  in  points 
of  interest,  and  if  you  will  promise  not  to  in- 
quire into  the  real  names  of  the  parties  con- 
cerned, as  the  affair  is  a  secret,  I  will  relate  you 
my  experience  regarding  it." 

The  speaker  was  Q,  the  rising  young  detect- 
ive, universally  acknowledged  by  us  of  the 
force  as  the  most  astute  man  for  mysterious 
and  unprecedented  cases,  then  in  the  bureau, 
always  and  of  course  excepting  Mr.  Gryce; 


6  A  Navel  Case. 

and  such  a  statement  from  him  could  not  but 
arouse  our  deepest  curiosity.  Drawing  up, 
then,  to  the  stove  around  which  we  were  sit- 
ting in  lazy  enjoyment  of  one  of  those  off-hours 
so  dear  to  a  detective's  heart,  we  gave  with 
alacrity  the  required  promise ;  and  settling 
himself  back  with  the  satisfied  air  of  a  man  who 
has  a  good  story  to  tell  that  does  not  entirely 
lack  certain  points  redounding  to  his  own  credit, 
he  began  : 

I  was  one  Sunday  morning  loitering  at  the 

Precinct  Station,  when  the  door  opened 

and  a  respectable-looking  middle-aged  woman 
came  in,  whose  agitated  air  at  once  attracted 
my  attention.  Going  up  to  her,  I  asked  her 
what  she  wanted. 

"  A  detective,"  she  replied,  glancing  cau- 
tiously about  on  the  faces  of  the  various  men 
scattered  through  the  room.  "  I  don't  wish 
anything  said  about  it,  but  a  girl  disappeared 
from  our  house  last  night,  and  " — she  stopped 
here,  her  emotion  seeming  to  choke  her — "  and 
I  want  some  one  to  look  her  up,"  she  went  on 
at  last  with  the  most  intense  emphasis. 

"  A  girl  ?    what  kind  of  a  girl ;    and  what 


A  Novel  Case.  J 

house  do  you  mean  when  you  say  our  house  ?  * 

She  looked  at  me  keenly  before  replying. 
"  You  are  a  young  man,"  said  she;  "  isn't  there 
some  one  here  more  responsible  than  yourself 
that  I  can  talk  to  ?  " 

I  shrugged  my  shoulders  and  beckoned  to 
Mr.  Gryce  who  was  just  then  passing.  She 
at  once  seemed  to  put  confidence  in  him. 
Drawing  him  aside,  she  whispered  a  few  low 
eager  words  which  I  could  not  hear.  He 
listened  nonchalantly  for  a  moment  but  sud- 
denly made  a  move  which  I  knew  indicated 
strong  and  surprised  interest,  though  from  his 
face — but  you  know  what  Gryce's  face  is.  I 
was  about  to  walk  off,  convinced  he  had  got 
hold  of  something  he  would  prefer  to  manage 
himself,  when  the  Superintendent  came  in. 

"  Where  is  Gryce?"  asked  he  ;  "  tell  him  I 
want  him." 

Mr.  Gryce  heard  him  and  hastened  forward. 
As  he  passed  me,  he  whispered,  "  Take  a  man 
and  go  with  this  woman  ;  look  into  matters  and 
send  me  word  if  you  want  me  ;  I  will  be  here 
for  two  hours." 

I  did  not  need  a  second  permission.     Beck- 


8  A  Novel  Case. 

oning  to  Harris,  I  reapproached  the  woman. 
"Where  do  you  come  from,"  said  I,  "  I  am  to 
go  back  with  you  and  investigate  the  affair  it 
seems." 

"  Did  he  say  so  ?  "  she  asked,  pointing  to  Mr. 
Gryce  who  now  stood  with  his  back  to  us  busily 
talking  with  the  Superintendent. 

I  nodded,  and  she  at  once  moved  towards 
the  door.  "  I  come  from  No. Second  Ave- 
nue :  Mr.  Blake's  house,"  she  whispered,  utter- 
ing a  name  so  well  known,  I  at  once  under- 
stood Mr.  Gryce's  movement  of  sudden  inter- 
est "  A  girl — one  who  sewed  for  us — disap- 
peared last  night  in  a  way  to  alarm  us  very 
much.  She  was  taken  from  her  room — " 
"  Yes,"  she  cried  vehemently,  seeing  my 
look  of  sarcastic  incredulity,  "  taken  from  her 
room  ;  she  never  went  of  her  own  accord  ;  and 
she  must  be  found  if  I  spend  every  dollar  of  the 
pittance  I  have  laid  up  in  the  bank  against  my 
old  age." 

Her  manner  was  so  intense,  her  tone  so 
marked  and  her  words  so  vehement,  I  at  once 
and  naturally  asked  if  the  girl  was  a  relative 
of  hers  that  she  felt  her  abduction  so  keenly. 


A  Novel  Case.  9 

"  No,"  she  replied,  "  not  a  relative,  but,"  she 
Went  on,  looking  every  way  but  in  my  face, 
"  a  very  dear  friend — a — a — protegee,  I  think 
they  call  it,  of  mine ;  I — I — She  must  be 
found,"  she  again  reiterated. 

We  were  by  this  time  in  the  street. 

"  Nothing  must  be  said  about  it,"  she  now 
whispered,  catching  me  by  the  arm.  "  I  told 
him  so,"  nodding  back  to  the  building  from 
which  we  had  just  issued,  "  and  he  promised 
secrecy.  It  can  be  done  without  folks  knowing 
anything  about  it,  can't  it  ?  " 

"What?"  I  asked. 

"  Finding  the  girl." 

"Well,"  said  I,  "we  can  tell  you  better  about 
that  when  we  know  a  few  more  of  the  facts. 
What  is  the  girl's  name  and  what  makes  you 
think  she  didn't  go  out  of  the  house-door  of  her 
own  accord  ?  " 

"  Why,  why,  everything.  She  wasn't  the 
person  to  do  it ;  then  the  looks  of  her  room, 
and — They  all  got  out  of  the  window,"  she 
cried  suddenly,  "  and  went  away  by  the  side 
gate  into Street." 

"  They  ?     Who  do  you  mean  by  they  ?  " 


IO  A  Novel  Case. 

"  Why,  whoever  they  were  who  carried  her 
off." 

I  could  not  suppress  the  "  bah ! "  that  rose 
to  my  lips.  Mr.  Gryce  might  have  been  able 
to,  but  I  am  not  Gryce. 

"  You  don't  believe,"  said  she,  "  that  she  was 
carried  off?" 

"  Well,  no,"  said  I,  "  not  in  the  sense  you 
mean." 

She  gave  another  nod  back  to  the  police 
station  now  a  block  or  so  distant.  "He  did'nt 
seem  to  doubt  it  at  all." 

I  laughed.  "  Did  you  tell  him  you  thought 
she  had  been  taken  off  in  this  way  ?  " 

"  Yes,  and  he  said,  '  Very  likely.'  And  well 
he  might,  for  I  heard  the  men  talking  in  her 
room,  and — " 

"  You  heard  men  talking  in  her  room—- 
when ?  " 

"  O,  it  must  have  been  as  late  as  half-past 
twelve.  I  had  been  asleep  and  the  noise  they 
made  whispering,  woke  me." 

"  Wait,"  I  said,  "  tell  me  where  her  room  is, 
hers  and  yours." 

"  Hers  is  the  third  story  back,  mine  the  front 
one  on  the  same  floor." 


A  Novel  Case.  II 

"  Who  are  you  ?  "  I  now  inquired.  "  What 
position  do  you  occupy  in  Mr.  Blake's  house?" 

"  I  am  the  housekeeper." 

Mr.  Blake  was  a  bachelor. 

"  And  you  were  wakened  last  night  by  hear- 
ing whispering  which  seemed  to  come  from  this 
girl's  room." 

"  Yes,  I  at  first  thought  it  was  the  folks  next 
door, — we  often  hear  them  when  they  are  un- 
usually noisy, — but  soon  I  became  assured  it 
came  from  her  room  ;  and  more  astonished  than 
I  could  say, — She  is  a  good  girl,"  she  broke  in, 
suddenly  looking  at  me  with  hotly  indignant 
eyes,  "  a — a — as  good  a  girl  as  this  whole  city 
can  show  ;  don't  you  dare,  any  of  you,  to  hint 
at  anything  else  or — " 

"  Come,  come,"  I  said  soothingly,  a  little 
ashamed  of  my  too  communicative  face,  "  I 
haven't  said  anything,  we  will  take  it  for 
granted  she  is  as  good  as  gold,  go  on." 

The  woman  wiped  her  forehead  with  a  hand 
that  trembled  like  a  leaf.  "  Where  was  I  ?  " 
said  she.  "  O,  I  heard  voices  and  was  sur- 
prised and  got  up  and  went  to  her  door.  The 
noise  I  made  unlocking  my  own  must  have 


12  A  Novel  Case. 

startled  her,  for  all  was  perfectly  quiet  when  I 
got  there.  I  waited  a  moment,  then  I  turned 
the  knob  and  called  her  :  she  did  not  reply  and 
I  called  again.  Then  she  came  to  the  door,  but 
did  not  unlock  it.  '  What  is  it  ? '  she  asked. 
'  O,'  said  I,  '  I  thought  I  heard  talking  here  and 
I  was  frightened,'  '  It  must  have  been  next 
door/  said  she.  I  begged  pardon  and  went 
back  to  my  room.  There  was  no  more  noise, 
but  when  in  the  morning  we  broke  into  her 
room  and  found  her  gone,  the  window  open 
and  signs  of  distress  and  struggle  around,  I 
knew  I  had  not  been  mistaken  ;  that  there 
were  men  with  her  when  I  went  to  her  door, 
and  that  they  had  carried  her  off — " 

This  time  I  could  not  restrain  myself. 

"  Did  they  drop  her  out  of  the  window  ?  "  I 
inquired. 

"  O,"  said  she,  "  we  are  building  an  exten- 
sion, and  there  is  a  ladder  running  up  to  the 
third  floor,  and  it  was  by  means  of  that  they 
took  her." 

"  Indeed  !  she  seems  at  least  to  have  been  a 
willing  victim,"  I  remarked. 

The  woman  clutched  my  arm  with  a  grip  like 


A  Novel  Case.  13 

Iron.  "  Don't  you  believe  it,"  gasped  she, 
stopping  me  in  the  street  where  we  were. 
"  I  tell  you  if  what  I  say  is  true,  and  these  bur- 
glars or  whatever  they  were,  did  carry  her  off, 
it  was  an  agony  to  her,  an  awful,  awful  thing 
that  will  kill  her  if  it  has  not  done  so  already. 
You  don't  know  what  you  are  talking  about, 
you  never  saw  her — " 

"  Was  she  pretty,"  I  asked,  hurrying  the 
woman  along,  for  more  than  one  passer-by  had 
turned  their  heads  to  look  at  us.  The  question 
seemed  in  some  way  to  give  her  a  shock. 

"  Ah,  I  don't  know,"  she  muttered ;  "  some 
might  not  think  so,  I  always  did ;  it  depended 
upon  the  way  you  looked  at  her." 

For  the  first  time  I  felt  a  thrill  of  anticipation 
shoot  through  my  veins.  Why,  I  could  not  say. 
Her  tone  was  peculiar,  and  she  spoke  in  a  sort 
of  brooding  way  as  though  she  were  weighing 
something  in  her  own  mind  ;  but  then  her  man- 
ner had  been  peculiar  throughout.  Whatever 
it  was  that  aroused  my  suspicion,  I  determined 
henceforth  to  keep  a  very  sharp  eye  upon  her 
ladyship.  Levelling  a  straight  glance  at  her 
face,  I  asked  her  how  it  was  that  she  came  to 


14  A  Novel  Case. 

be  the  one  to  inform  the  authorities  of  the  girl's 
disappearance. 

"  Doesn't  Mr.  Blake  know  anything  about 

it  ? " 

The  faintest  shadow  of  a  change  came  into 
her  manner.  "  Yes,"  said  she,  "  I  told  him  at 
breakfast  time ;  but  Mr.  Blake  doesn't  take 
much  interest  in  his  servants  ;  he  leaves  all 
such  matters  to  me." 

"  Then  he  does  not  know  you  have  come  for 
the  police  ?  " 

"  No,  sir,  and  O,  if  you  would  be  so  good  as 
to  keep  it  from  him.  It  is  not  necessary  he 
should  know.  I  shall  let  you  in  the  back  way. 
Mr.  Blake  is  a  man  who  never  meddles  with 
anything,  and — " 

"  What  did  Mr.  Blake  say  this  morning  when 
you  told  him  that  this  girl — By  the  way,  what 
is  her  name  ?  " 

"  Emily." 

"  That  this  girl,  Emily,  had  disappeared  dur- 
ing the  night  ?  " 

"  Not  much  of  anything,  sir.  He  was  sit- 
ting at  the  breakfast  table  reading  his  paper,  he 
merely  looked  up,  frowned  a  little  in  an  absent- 


A  Navel  Case.  i5 

minded  way,  and  told  me  I  must  manage  the 
servants'  affairs  without  troubling  him." 

"  And  you  let  it  drop  ?  " 

"  Yes  sir  ;  Mr.  Blake  is  not  a  man  to  speak 
cwice  to." 

I  could  easily  believe  that  from  what  I  had 
seen  of  him  in  public,  for  though  by  no  means 
a  harsh  looking  man,  he  had  a  reserved  air 
which  if  maintained  in  private  must  have  made 
him  very  difficult  of  approach. 

We  were  now  within  a  half  block  or  so  of  the 
old-fashioned  mansion  regarded  by  this  scion 
of  New  York's  aristocracy  as  one  of  the  most 
desirable  residences  in  the  city  ;  so  motioning  to 
the  man  who  had  accompanied  me  to  take  his 
stand  in  a  doorway  near  by  and  watch  for  the 
signal  I  would  give  him  in  case  I  wanted  Mr. 
Gryce,  I  turned  to  the  woman,  who  was  now 
all  in  a  flutter,  and  asked  her  how  she  proposed 
to  get  me  into  the  house  without  the  knowl- 
edge of  Mr.  Blake. 

"  O  sir,  all  you  have  got  to  do  is  to  follow 
me  right  up  the  back  stairs ;  he  won't  notice,  or 
if  he  does  will  not  ask  any  questions." 

And  having  by  this  time  reached  the  base- 


1 6  A  Novel  Case. 

ment  door,  she  took  out  a  key  from  her  pocket 
and  inserting  it  in  the  lock,  at  once  admitted 
us  into  the  dwelling. 


CHAPTER  II. 

A   FEW    POINTS. 

MRS.  DANIELS,  for  that  was  her  name, 
took  me  at  once  up  stairs  to  th£  third 
story  back  room.  As  we  passed  through  the 
halls,  I  could  not  but  notice  how  rich,  though 
sombre  were  the  old  fashioned  walls  and  heavily 
frescoed  ceilings,  so  different  in  style  and  color- 
ing from  what  we  see  now-a-days  in  our  secret 
penetrations  into  Fifth  Avenue  mansions.  Many 
as  are  the  wealthy  houses  I  have  been  called 
upon  to  enter  in  the  line  of  my  profession,  I 
had  never  crossed  the  threshold  of  such  an  one 
as  this  before,  and  impervious  as  I  am  to  any 
foolish  sentimentalities,  I  felt  a  certain  degree 
of  awe  at  the  thought  of  invading  with  police 
investigation,  this  home  of  ancient  Knicker- 


1 8  A  Few  Points. 

bocker  respectability.  But  once  in  the  room  of 
the  missing  girl,  every  consideration  fled  save 
that  of  professional  pride  and  curiosity.  For 
almost  at  first  blush,  I  saw  that  whether  Mrs. 
Daniels  was  correct  or  not  in  her  surmises  as  to 
the  manner  of  the  girl's  disappearance,  the  fact 
that  she  had  disappeared  was  likely  to  prove  an 
affair  of  some  importance.  For,  let  me  state 
the  facts  in  the  order  in  which  I  noticed  them. 
The  first  thing  that  impressed  me  was,  that 
whatever  Mrs.  Daniels  called  her,  this  was  no 
sewing  girl's  room  into  which  I  now  stepped. 
Plain  as  was  the  furniture  in  comparison  with 
the  elaborate  richness  of  the  walls  and  ceil- 
ing, there  were  still  scattered  through  the 
room,  which  was  large  even  for  a  thirty  foot 
house,  articles  of  sufficient  elegance  to  make 
the  supposition  that  it  was  the  abode  of  an 
ordinary  seamstress  open  to  suspicion,  if  no 
more. 

Mrs.  Daniels,  seeing  my  look  of  surprise, 
hastened  to  provide  some  explanation.  "  It  is 
the  room  which  has  always  been  devoted  to 
sewing,"  said  she  ;  "  and  when  Emily  came,  I 
thought  it  would  be  easier  to  put  up  a  bed  here 


A  Few  Points.  19 

than  to  send  her  upstairs.  She  was  a  very  nice 
girl  and  disarranged  nothing." 

I  glanced  around  on  the  writing-case  lying 
open  on  a  small  table  in  the  centre  of  the  room, 
on  the  vase  half  full  of  partly  withered  roses, 
on  the  mantel-piece,  the  Shakspeare,  and 
Macaulay's  History  lying  on  the  stand  at  my 
right,  thought  my  own  thoughts,  but  said 
nothing. 

"  You  found  the  door  locked  this  morning  ?  " 
asked  I,  after  a  moment's  scrutiny  of  the  room 
in  which  three  facts  had  become  manifest :  first, 
that  the  girl  had  not  occupied  the  bed  the  night 
before  ;  second,  that  there  had  been  some  sort 
of  struggle  or  surprise, — one  of  the  curtains 
being  violently  torn  as  if  grasped  by  an  agitated 
hand,  to  say  nothing  of  a  chair  lying  upset  on 
the  floor  with  one  of  its  legs  broken  ;  third, 
that  the  departure,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  had 
been  by  the  window. 

"  Yes,"  returned  she ;  "  but  there  is  a  passage-, 
way  leading  from  my  room  to  hers  and  it  was 
by  that  means  we  entered.  There  was  a  chair 
placed  against  the  door  on  this  side  but  we 
easily  pushed  it  away." 


2O  A  Few  Joints. 

I  stepped  to  the  window  and  looked  out 
Ah,  it  would  not  be  so  very  difficult  for  a  man 
to  gain  the  street  from  that  spot  in  a  dark 
night,  for  the  roof  of  the  newly-erected  exten- 
sion was  almost  on  a  level  with  the  window." 

"  Well,"  said  she  anxiously,  "  couldn't  she 
have  been  got  out  that  way  ?  " 

"  More  difficult  things  have  been  done,"  said 
I ;  and  was  about  to  step  out  upon  the  roof 
when  I  bethought  to  inquire  of  Mrs.  Daniels  if 
any  of  the  girl's  clothing  was  missing. 

She  immediately  flew  to  the  closets  and 
thence  to  bureau  drawers  which  she  turned 
hastily  over.  "  No,  nothing  is  missing  but  a 
hat  and  cloak  and —  She  paused  confusedly. 

"  And  what?  "  I  asked. 

41  Nothing,"  returned  she,  hurriedly  closing 
the  bureau  drawer ;  "  only  some  little  knick- 
knacks." 

"  Knick-knacks !  "  quoth  I.  "  If  she  stopped 
for  knick-knacks,  she  couldn't  have  gone  in  any 
very  unwilling  frame  of  mind."  And  somewhat 
disgusted,  I  was  about  to  throw  up  the  whole 
affair  and  leave  the  room.  But  the  indecision 
in  Mrs.  Daniels'  own  face  deterred  me. 


A  Few  Points.  21 

"  I  don't  understand  it,"  murmured  she,  draw- 
ing her  hand  across  her  eyes.  "  I  don't  under- 
stand it.  But,"  she  went  on  with  even  an  in- 
crease in  her  old  tone  of  heart-felt  conviction, 
"  no  matter  whether  we  understand  it  or  not, 
the  case  is  serious  ;  I  tell  you  so,  and  she  must 
be  found." 

I  resolved  to  know  the  nature  of  that  must, 
used  as  few  women  in  her  position  would  use 
it  even  under  circumstances  to  all  appearance 
more  aggravated  than  these. 

"  Why,  must?  "  said  I.  "  If  the  girl  went  of 
her  own  accord  as  some  things  seem  to  show, 
why  should  you,  no  relative  as  you  acknowledge, 
take  the  matter  so  to  heart  as  to  insist  she  shall 
be  followed  and  brought  back  ?  " 

She  turned  away,  uneasily  taking  up  and  put- 
ting down  some  little  matters  on  the  table  be- 
fore her.  "  Is  it  not  enough  that  I  promise  to 
pay  for  all  expenses  which  a  search  will  occa- 
sion, without  my  being  forced  to  declare  just 
why  I  should  be  willing  to  do  so  ?  Am  I  bound 
to  tell  you  I  love  the  girl  ?  that  I  believe  she 
has  been  taken  away  by  foul  means,  and  that  to 
her  great  suffering  and  distress  ?  that  being 


22  A  Few  Points. 

fond  of  her  and  believing  this,  I  am  conscien- 
tious enough  to  put  every  means  I  possess  at 
the  command  of  those  who  will  recover  her?  " 

I  was  not  satisfied  with  this  but  on  that  very 
account  felt  my  enthusiasm  revive. 

"  But  Mr.  Blake  ?  Surely  he  is  the  one  to 
take  this  interest  if  anybody." 

"  I  have  before  said,"  returned  she,  paling 
however  as  she  spoke,  "  that  Mr.  Blake  takes 
very  little  interest  in  his  servants." 

I  cast  another  glance  about  the  room.  "How 
long  have  you  been  in  this  house  ?  "  asked  I. 

"  I  was  in  the  service  of  Mr.  Blake's  father 
and  he  died  a  year  ago." 

"  Since  when  you  have  remained  with  Mr. 
Blake  himself?  " 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  And  this  Emily,  when  did  she  come  here  ?" 

"  Oh  it  must  be  eleven  months  or  so  ago." 

"  An  Irish  girl  ?  " 

"  O  no,  American.  She  is  not  a  common 
person,  sir," 

"  What  do  you  mean  by  that  ?  That  she  was 
educated,  lady-like,  pretty,  or  what  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know  what  to  say.     She  was  edu- 


A   Few  Points.  23 

cated,  yes,  but  not  as  you  would  call  a  lady 
educated.  Yet  she  knew  a  great  many  things 
the  rest  of  us  did'nt.  She  liked  to  read,  you 
see,  and — O  sir,  ask  the  girls  about  her,  I  never 
know  what  to  say  when  I  am  questioned." 

I  scanned  the  gray-haired  woman  still  more 
intently  than  I  had  yet  done.  Was  she  the 
weak  common-place  creature  she  seemed,  or 
had  she  really  some  cause  other  than  appeared 
for  these  her  numerous  breaks  and  hesita- 
tions. 

"  Where  did  you  get  this  girl  ?  "  I  inquired. 
"  Where  did  she  live  before  coming  here  ?  " 

"  I  cannot  say,  I  never  asked  her  to  talk 
about  herself.  She  came  to  me  for  work  and 
I  liked  her  and  took  her  without  recommen- 
dation." 

"  And  she  has  served  you  well  ?  " 

"  Excellently." 

"  Been  out  much  ?     Had  any  visitors  ?  " 

She  shook  her  head.  "  Never  went  out  and 
never  had  any  visitors." 

I  own  I  was  nonplussed,  "  Well,"  said  I,  "no 
more  of  this  at  present.  I  must  first  find  out  if 
she  left  this  house  alone  or  in  company  with 


24  A  Few  fbtnts. 

others."  And  without  further  parley  I  stepped 
out  upon  the  roof  of  the  extension. 

As  I  did  so,  I  debated  with  myself  whether 
the  case  warranted  me  or  not  in  sending  for 
Mr.  Gryce.  As  yet  there  was  nothing  to  show 
that  the  girl  had  come  to  any  harm.  A  mere 
elopement  with  or  without  a  lover  to  help  her, 
was  not  such  a  serious  matter  that  the  whole 
police  force  need  be  stirred  up  on  the  subject ; 
and  if  the  woman  had  money,  as  she  said,  ready- 
to  give  the  man  who  should  discover  the  where- 
abouts of  this  girl,  why  need  that  money  be 
divided  up  any  more  than  was  necessary- .  Yet 
Gryce  was  not  one  to  be  dallied  with.  He  had 
said,  send  for  him  if  the  affair  seemed  to  call  for 
his  judgment,  and  somehow  the  affair  did  prom- 
ise to  be  a  trifle  complicated.  I  was  yet  unde- 
termined when  I  reached  the  edge  of  the  roof. 

It  was  a  dizzy  descent,  but  once  made,  escape 
from  the  yard  beneath  would  be  easy.  A  man 
could  take  that  road  without  difficulty  ;  but  a 
woman !  Baffled  at  the  idea  I  turned  thought- 
fully back,  when  I  beheld  something  on  the 
roof  before  me  that  caused  me  to  pause  and  ask 
myself  if  this  was  going  to  turn  out  to  be  a 


A   Few  Points.  2  5 

tragedy  after  all.  It  was  a  drop  of  congealed 
blood.  Further  on  towards  the  window  was 
another,  and  yes,  further  still,  another  and 
another.  I  even  found  one  upon  the  very 
window  ledge  itself.  Bounding  into  the  room, 
I  searched  the  carpet  for  further  traces.  It  was 
the  worst  one  in  the  world  to  find  anything 
upon  of  the  nature  of  which  I  was  seeking, 
being  a  confused  pattern  of  mingled  drab  and 
red,  and  in  my  difficulty  I  had  to  stoop  very 
low. 

"  What  are  you  looking  for  ?  "  cried  Mrs. 
Daniels. 

I  pointed  to  the  drop  on  the  window  sill 
"  Do  you  see  that  ?  "  I  asked. 

She  uttered  an  exclamation  and  bent  nearer. 
"  Blood !  "  cried  she,  and  stood  staring,  with 
rapidly  paling  cheeks  and  trembling  form. 
"  They  have  killed  her  and  he  will  never— 

As  she  did  not  finish  I  looked  up. 

"  Do  you  think  it  was  her  blood  ?  "  she  whis- 
pered in  a  horrified  tone. 

"  There  is  every  reason  to  believe  so,"  re- 
joined I,  pointing  to  a  spot  where  I  had  at 
last  discovered  not  only  one  crimson  drop  but 


26  A   Few  Points. 

many,  scattered  over  the  scarcely  redder  roses 
under  my  feet. 

"  Ah,  it  is  worse  than  I  thought,"  murmured 
she.  "  What  are  you  going  to  do  ?  What  can 
we  do  ? 

"  I  am  going  to  send  for  another  detective," 
returned  I  ;  and  stepping  to  the  window  I  tele- 
graphed at  once  to  the  man  Harris  to  go  for 
Mr.  Gryce. 

"  The  one  we  saw  at  the  Station?  " 

I  bowed  assent. 

Her  face  lost  something  of  its  drawn  expres- 
sion. "  O  I  am  glad  ;  he  will  do  something." 

Subduing  my  indignation  at  this  back  thrust, 
I  employed  my  time  in  taking  note  of  such  de- 
tails as  had  escaped  my  previous  attention. 
They  were  not  many.  The  open  writing-desk 
— in  which,  however  I  found  no  letters  or  writ- 
ten documents  of  any  kind,  only  a  few  sheets  of 
paper,  with  pen,  ink,  etc. ;  the  brush  and  hair- 
pins scattered  on  the  bureau  as  though  the  girl 
had  been  interrupted  while  arranging  her  hair 
(if  she  had  been  interrupted) ;  and  the  absence 
of  any  great  pile  of  work  such  as  one  would  ex- 
pect to  see  in  a  room  set  apart  for  sewing,  were 


A   Few  Points,  27 

all  I  could  discover.  Not  much  to  help  us,  in 
case  this  was  to  prove  an  affair  of  importance 
as  I  began  to  suspect. 

With  Mr.  Gryce's  arrival,  however,  things 
soon  assumed  a  better  shape.  He  came  to  the 
basement  door,  was  ushered  in  by  your  hum- 
ble servant,  had  the  whole  matter  as  far  as 
I  had  investigated  it,  at  his  finger-ends  in  a 
moment,  and  was  up-stairs  and  in  that  room  be- 
fore I,  who  am  called  the  quickest  man  in  the 
force  as  you  all  know,  could  have  time  to  de- 
termine just  what  difference  his  presence  would 
make  to  me  in  a  pecuniary  way  in  event  of 
Mrs.  Daniels'  promises  amounting  to  anything. 
He  did  not  remain  there  long,  but  when  he 
came  down  I  saw  that  his  interest  was  in  no 
wise  lessened. 

"  What  kind  of  a  looking  girl  was  this  ?  " 
he  asked,  hurrying  up  to  Mrs.  Daniels  who  had 
withdrawn  into  a  recess  in  the  lower  hall  while 
all  this  was  going  on.  "  Describe  her  to  me, 
hair,  eyes,  complexion,  etc.;  you  know." 

"  I — I — don't  know  as  I  can,"  she  stammered 
reluctantly,  turning  very  red  in  the  face.  "  I 
am  a  poor  one  for  noticing.  I  will  call  one  of 


28  A   Few  Points. 

the  girls,  I — "     She  was  gone  before  we  re 
alized  she  had  not  finished  her  sentence. 

"  Humph !  "  broke  from  Mr.  Gryce's  lips 
as  he  thoughtfully  took  down  a  vase  that 
stood  on  a  bracket  near  by  and  looked  into 
it 

I  did  not  venture  a  word. 

When  Mrs.  Daniels  came  back  she  had 
with  her  a  trim-looking  girl  of  prepossessing 
appearance. 

"  This  is  Fanny,"  said  she ;  "  she  knows 
Emily  well,  being  in  the  habit  of  waiting  on  her 
at  table  ;  she  will  tell  you  what  you  want  to 
hear.  I  have  explained  to  her,"  she  went  on, 
nodding  towards  Mr.  Gryce  with  a  composure 
such  as  she  had  not  before  displayed  ;  "  that 
you  are  looking  for  your  niece  who  ran  away 
from  home  some  time  ago  to  go  into  some  sort 
of  service." 

"  Certainly,  ma'am,"  quoth  that  gentleman, 
bowing  with  mock  admiration  to  the  gas-fixture. 
Then  carelessly  shifting  his  glance  to  the  clean- 
ing-cloth which  Fanny  held  rather  conspicuously 
in  her  hand,  he  repeated  the  question  he  had 
already  put  to  Mrs.  Daniels. 


A  FSW  Points.  29 

The  girl,  tossing  her  head  just  a  trifle,  at  once 
replied  : 

"  O  she  was  good-looking  enough,  if  that  is 
what  you  mean,  for  them  as  likes  a  girl  with 
cheeks  as  white  as  this  cloth  was  afore  I  rubbed 
the  spoons  with  it.  As  for  her  eyes,  they  was 
blacker  than  her  hair,  which  was  the  blackest 
I  ever  see.  She  had  no  flesh  at  all,  and  as  for 
her  figur, — "  Fanny  glanced  down  on  her  own 
well  developed  person,  and  gave  a  shrug  inex- 
pressibly suggestive. 

"  Is  this  description  true  ?  "  Mr.  Gryce  asked, 
seemingly  of  Mrs.  Daniels,  though  his  gaze 
rested  with  curious  intentness  on  the  girl's  head 
which  was  covered  with  a  little  cap. 

"  Sufficiently  so,**  returned  Mrs.  Daniels  in  a 
very  low  tone,  however.  Then  with  a  sudden 
display  of  energy,  "  Emily's  figure  is  not  what 
you  would  call  plump.  I  have  seen  her — " 
She  broke  off  as  if  a  little  startled  at  herself  and 
motioned  Fanny  to  go. 

"  Wait  a  moment,"  interposed  Mr.  Gryce  in 
his  soft  way.  "  You  said  the  girl's  hair  and 
eyes  were  dark ;  were  they  darker  than 
yours  ?  " 


30  A  Few  Points. 

"  O,  yes  sir  ;  "  replied  the  girl  simpering,  as 
she  settled  the  ribbons  on  her  cap. 

"  Let  me  see  your  hair." 

She  took  off  her  cap  with  a  smile. 

"  Ha,  very  pretty,  very  pretty.  And  the 
other  girls  ?  You  have  other  girls  I  suppose  ?  " 

"Two,  sir;"  returned  Mrs.  Daniels. 

"  How  about  their  complexions  ?  Are  they 
lighter  too  than  Emily's  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  about  like  Fanny's." 

Mr.  Gryce  spread  his  hand  over  his  breast  in 
a  way  that  assured  me  of  his  satisfaction,  and 
allowed  the  girl  to  go. 

"  We  will  now  proceed  to  the  yard,"  said  he. 
But  at  that  moment  the  door  of  the  front  room 
opened  and  a  gentleman  stepped  leisurely  into 
the  hall,  whom  at  first  glance  I  recognized 
as  the  master  of  the  house.  He  was  dressed 
for  the  street  and  had  his  hat  in  his  hand.  At 
the  sight  we  all  stood  silent,  Mrs.  Daniels  flush- 
ing up  to  the  roots  of  her  gray  hair. 

Mr.  Blake  is  an  elegant-looking  man  as  you 
perhaps  know;  proud,  reserved,  and  a  trifle 
sombre.  As  he  turned  to  come  towards  us, 
the  light  shining  through  the  windows  at  our 


A  Few  Points.  31 

right,  fell  full  upon  his  face,  revealing  such  a 
self-absorbed  and  melancholy  expression,  I  in- 
voluntarily drew  back  as  if  I  had  unwittingly 
intruded  upon  a  great  man's  privacy.  Mr. 
Gryce  on  the  contrary  stepped  forward. 

"Mr.  Blake,  I  believe,"  said  he,  bowing  in 
that  deferential  way  he  knows  so  well  how  to 
assume. 

The  gentleman,  startled  as  it  evidently 
seemed  from  a  reverie,  looked  hastily  up. 
Meeting  Mr.  Gryce's  bland  smile,  he  returned 
the  bow,  but  haughtily,  and  as  it  appeared  in 
an  abstracted  way. 

"  Allow  me  to  introduce  myself,"  proceeded 
my  superior.  "  I  am  Mr.  Gryce  from  the  detec- 
tive bureau.  We  were  notified  this  morning 
that  a  girl  in  your  employ  had  disappeared 
from  your  house  last  night  in  a  somewhat 
strange  and  unusual  way,  and  I  just  stepped 
over  with  my  man  here,  to  see  if  the  matter  is 
of  sufficient  importance  to  inquire  into.  With 
many  apoligies  for  the  intrusion,  I  stand  obed- 
ient to  your  orders," 

With  a  frown  expressive  of  annoyance,  Mr. 
Blake  glanced  around  and  detecting  Mrs.  Dan- 


32  A   Few  Points. 

iels,  said  :  "  Did  you  consider  the  affair  so 
serious  as  that  ?  " 

She  nodded,  seeming  to  find  it  difficult  to 
speak. 

He  remained  looking1  at  her  with  an  express- 
ion of  some  doubt.  "  I  can  hardly  think,"  said 
he,  "  such  extreme  measures  were  necessary ; 
the  girl  will  doubtless  come  back,  or  if  not — " 
His  shoulders  gave  a  slight  shrug  and  he  took 
out  his  gloves. 

"  The  difficulty  seems  to  be,  "  quoth  Mr. 
Gryce  eyeing  those  gloves  with  his  most  intent 
and  concentrated  look,  "  that  the  girl  did  not  go 
alone,  but  was  helped  away,  or  forced  away,  by 
parties  who  had  previously  broken  into  your 
house." 

"  That  is  a  strange  circumstance,"  remarked 
Mr.  Blake,  but  still  without  any  appearance  oi 
interest,  "and  if  you  are  sure  of  what  you  say, 
demands,  perhaps,  some  inquiry.  I  would  not 
wish  to  put  anything  in  the  way  of  justice  suc- 
coring the  injured.  But — "  again  he  gave  that 
slight  shrug  of  the  shoulders,  indicative  of  doubt, 
if  not  indifference. 

Mrs.  Daniels  trembled,  and  took  a  step  for- 


A   Few  Points.  33 

ward.  I  thought  she  was  going  to  speak,  but 
instead  of  that  she  drew  back  again  in  her 
strange  hesitating  way. 

Mr.  Gryce  did  not  seem  to  notice. 

"  Perhaps  sir,"  said  he,  "  if  you  will  step  up- 
stairs with  me  to  the  room  occupied  by  this  girl, 
I  may  be  able  to  show  you  certain  evidences 
which  will  convince  you  that  our  errand  here  is 
not  one  of  presumption." 

"  I  am  ready  to  concede  that  without  troub- 
ling myself  with  proof,"  observed  the  master  of 
the  house  with  the  faintest  show  of  asperity. 
"  Yet  if  there  is  anything  to  see  of  a  startling 
nature,  perhaps  I  had  best  yield  to  your  wishes. 
Whereabouts  in  the  house  is  this  girl's  room, 
Mrs.  Daniels  ?  " 

"  It  is — I  gave  her  the  third  story  back,  Mr. 
Blake  ;  "  replied  that  woman,  nervously  eyeing 
his  face.  "  It  was  large  And  light  for  sewing, 
and  she  was  so  nice — " 

He  impatiently  waved  his  hand  on  which  he 
had  by  this  time  fitted  his  glove  to  a  nicety,  as 
if  these  details  were  an  unnecessary  bore  to 
him,  and  motioned  her  to  show  the  way.  In- 
stantly a  new  feeling  appeared  to  seize  her, 
that  of  alarm. 


34  A  Few  Points. 

"  I  hardly  think  you  need  trouble  Mr.  Blake 
to  go  up-stairs,"  she  murmured,  turning  towards 
Mr.  Gryce.  "  I  am  sure  when  you  tell  him  the 
curtains  were  torn,  and  the  chair  upset,  the  win- 
dow open  and — " 

But  Mr.  Gryce  was  already  on  the  stairs  with 
Mr.  Blake,  whom  this  small  opposition  seemed 
to  have  at  once  determined. 

"  O  my  God ! "  she  murmured  to  herself, 
"  who  could  have  foreseen  this."  And  ignoring 
my  presence  with  all  the  egotism  of  extreme 
agitation,  she  hurried  past  me  to  the  room 
above,  where  I  speedily  joined  her. 


CHAPTER  HI. 

THE  CONTENTS  OF  A  BUREAU  DRAWER. 

MR.  BLAKE  was  standing  in  the  centre 
of  the  room  when  I  entered,  carelessly 
following  with  his  eyes  the  motion  of  Mr. 
Gryce's  finger  as  that  gentleman  pointed  with 
unwearying  assiduity  to  the  various  little  de- 
tails that  had  struck  us.  His  hat  was  still  in  his 
hand,  and  he  presented  a  very  formidable  and 
imposing  appearance,  or  so  Mrs.  Daniels  ap- 
peared to  think  as  she  stood  watching  him 
from  the  corner,  whither  she  had  withdrawn 
herself. 

"  A  forcible  departure  you  see,"  exclaimed 
Mr.  Gryce  ;  "  she  had  not  even  time  to  gather 
up  her  clothes  ;  "  and  with  a  sudden  movement 
he  stooped  and  pulled  out  one  of  the  bureau 


36  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

drawers  before  the  eyes  of  his  nonchalant 
listener. 

Immediately  a  smothered  exclamation  struck 
our  ears,  and  Mrs.  Daniels  started  forward. 

"  I  pray,  gentlemen,"  she  entreated,  advanc- 
ing in  such  a  way  as  to  place  herself  against  the 
front  of  the  bureau  in  a  manner  to  preclude  the 
opening  of  any  more  drawers,  "  that  you  will 
remember  that  a  modest  woman  such  as  this 
girl  was,  would  hardly  like  to  have  her  clothing 
displayed  before  the  eyes  of  strangers." 

Mr.  Gryce  instantly  closed  the  drawer. 

44  You  are  right,"  said  he  ;  "  pardon  the 
rough  ways  of  a  somewhat  hardened  officer  of 
the  law." 

She  drew  up  closer  to  the  bureau,  still  pro- 
tecting it  with  her  meagre  but  energetic  form, 
while  her  eyes  rested  with  almost  a  savage  ex- 
pression upon  the  master  of  the  house  as  if  he, 
and  not  the  detective,  had  been  the  aggressor 
whose  advances  she  feared. 

Mr.  Blake  did  not  return  the  look. 

44  If  that  is  all  you  can  show  me,  I  think  I 
will  proceed  to  my  appointment,"  said  he. 
"The  matter  does  seem  to  be  more  serious 


Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer.  37 

than  I  thought,  and  if  you  judge  it  necessary  to 
take  any  active  measures,  why,let  no  considera- 
tion of  my  great  and  inherent  dislike  to  notoriety 
of  any  kind,  interfere  with  what  you  consider 
your  duty.  As  for  the  house,  it  is  at  your  com- 
mand, under  Mrs.  Daniels'  direction.  Good 
morning."  And  returning  our  bows  with  one 
singularly  impressive  for  all  its  elegant  careless- 
ness, he  at  once  withdrew. 

Mrs.  Daniels  took  one  long  deep  breath  and 
came  from  the  bureau.  Instantly  Mr.  Gryce 
stooped  and  pulled  out  the  drawer  she  had  so 
visibly  protected.  A  white  towel  met  our  eyes, 
spread  neatly  out  at  its  full  length.  Lifting  it, 
we  looked  beneath.  A  carefully  folded  dress 
of  dark  blue  silk,  to  all  appearance  elegantly 
made,  confronted  our  rather  eager  eyes.  Be- 
side it,  a  collar  of  exquisite  lace — I  know  enough 
of  such  matters  to  be  a  judge — pricked  through 
by  a  gold  breast-pin  of  a  strange  and  unique 
pattern.  A  withered  bunch  of  what  appeared 
to  have  been  a  bouquet  of  red  roses,  surmounted 
the  whole,  giving  to  the  otherwise  common- 
place collection  the  appearance  of  a  relic  from 
the  tomb. 


38  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

We  both  drew  back  in  some  amazement,  in- 
voluntarily glancing  up  at  Mrs.  Daniels. 

"  I  have  no  explanation  to  give,"  said  that 
woman,  with  a  calmness  strangely  in  contrast 
to  the  agitation  she  had  displayed  while  Mr. 
Blake  had  remained  in  the  room.  "  That  those 
things  rich  as  they  are,  really  belonged  to  the 
girl,  I  have  no  doubt.  She  brought  them  when 
she  came,  and  they  only  confirm  what  I  have 
before  intimated  :  that  she  was  no  ordinary 
sewing  girl,  but  a  woman  who  had  seen  better 
days." 

With  a  low  "  humph !  "  and  another  glance  at 
the  dark  blue  dress  and  delicate  collar,  Mr. 
Gryce  carefully  replaced  the  cloth  he  had  taken 
from  them,  and  softly  closed  the  drawer  with- 
out either  of  us  having  laid  a  finger  upon  a 
single  article.  Five  minutes  later  he  disap- 
peared from  the  room. 

I  did  not  see  him  again  till  occasion  took  me 
below,  when  I  beheld  him  softly  issue  from  Mr. 
Blake's  private  apartment.  Meeting  me,  he 
smiled,  and  I  saw  that  whether  he  was  con- 
scious of  betraying  it  or  not,  he  had  come  upon 
some  clue,  or  at  the  least  fashioned  for  himself 


Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer.  39 

some  theory  with  which  he  was  more  or  less 
satisfied. 

"  An  elegant  apartment,  that,"  whispered  he, 
nodding  sideways  toward  the  room  he  had  jusl 
left,  "  pity  you  haven't  time  to  examine  it." 

"  Are  you  sure  that  1  haven't  ?  "  returned  I, 
drawing  a  step  nearer  to  escape  the  eyes  of 
Mrs.  Daniels  who  had  descended  after  me. 

"  Quite  sure  ;  "  and  we  hastened  down  to- 
gether into  the  yard. 

But  my  curiosity  once  aroused  in  this  way 
would  not  let  me  rest.  Taking  an  opportunity 
when  Mr.  Gryce  was  engaged  in  banter  with 
the  girls  below,  and  in  this  way  learning  more 
in  a  minute  of  what  he  wanted  to  know  than 
some  men  would  gather  in  an  hour  by  that  or 
any  other  method,  I  stole  lightly  back  and 
entered  this  room. 

I  almost  started  in  my  surprise.  Instead  of 
the  luxurious  apartment  I  had  prepared  myself 
to  behold,  a  plain,  scantily-furnished  room 
opened  before  me,  of  a  nature  between  a  library 
and  a  studio.  There  was  not  even  a  carpet  on 
the  polished  floor,  only  a  rug,  which  strange  to 
say  was  not  placed  in  the  centre  of  the  room  or 


40  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

even  before  the  fireplace,  but  on  one  side,  and 
directly  in  front  of  a  picture  that  almost  at  first 
blush  had  attracted  my  attention  as  being  the 
only  article  in  the  room  worth  looking  at.  It 
was  the  portrait  of  a  wo'nan,  handsome,  haughty 
and  alluring ;  a  modern  beauty,  with  eyes  of 
fire  burning  beneath  high  piled  locks  of  jetty 
blackness,  that  were  only  relieved  from  being 
too  intense  by  the  scarlet  hood  of  an  opera 
cloak,  that  was  drawn  over  them.  "  A  sister," 
I  thought  to  myself,  "  it  is  too  modern  for  his 
mother,"  and  I  took  a  step  nearer  to  see  if 
I  could  trace  any  likeness  in  the  chiselled  fea- 
tures of  this  disdainful  brunette,  to  the  more 
characteristic  ones  of  the  careless  gentleman 
who  had  stood  but  a  few  moments  before  in  my 
presence.  As  I  did  so,  I  was  struck  with  the 
distance  with  which  the  picture  stood  out  from 
the  wall,  and  thought  to  myself  that  the  awk- 
wardness of  the  framing  came  near  marring  the 
beauty  of  this  otherwise  lovely  work  of  art. 
As  for  the  likeness  I  was  in  search  of,  I  found 
it  or  thought  I  did,  in  the  expression  of  the  eyes 
which  were  of  the  same  color  as  Mr.  Blake's 
but  more  full  and  passionate  ;  and  satisfied  that 


Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer.  41 

I  had  exhausted  all  the  picture  could  tell  me, 
I  turned  to  make  what  other  observations  I 
could,  when  I  was  startled  by  confronting  the 
agitated  countenance  of  Mrs.  Daniels  who  had 
entered  behind  me. 

"This  is  Mr.  Blake's  room,"  said  she  with 
dignity  ;  "  no  one  ever  intrudes  here  but  my- 
self, not  even  the  servants." 

"  I  beg  pardon,"  said  I,  glancing  around  in 
vain  for  the  something  which  had  awakened 
that  look  of  satisfaction  in  Mr.  Gryce's  eyes. 
"  I  was  attracted  by  the  beauty  of  this  picture 
visible  through  the  half  open  door  and  stepped 
in  to  favor  myself  with  a  nearer  view.  It  is 
very  lovely.  A  sister  of  Mr.  Blake  ?  " 

"  No,  his  cousin  ;  "  and  she  closed  the  door 
after  us  with  an  emphasis  that  proclaimed  she 
was  anything  but  pleased. 

It  was  my  last  effort  to  obtain  information  on 
my  own  account.  In  a  few  moments  later  Mr. 
Gryce  appeared  from  below,  and  a  conversation 
ensued  with  Mrs.  Daniels  that  absorbed  my 
whole  attention. 

"  You  are  very  anxious,  my  man  here  tells 
me,  that  this  girl  should  be  found  ?  "  remarked 


42  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

Mr.  Gryce ;  "  so  much  so  that  you  are  willing  to 
defray  all  the  expenses  of  a  search  ?  " 

She  bowed.  "  As  far  as  I  am  able  sir ;  I 
have  a  few  hundreds  in  the  bank,  you  are  wel- 
come to  them.  I  would  not  keep  a  dollar  back 
if  I  had  thousands,  but  I  am  poor,  and  can  only 
promise  you  what  I  myself  possess  ;  though — " 
and  her  cheeks  grew  flushed  and  hot  with  an 
unnatural  agitation — "  I  believe  that  thousands 
would  not  be  lacking  if  they  were  found  neces- 
sary. I — I  could  almost  swear  you  shall  have 
anything  in  reason  which  you  require  ;  only  the 
girl  must  be  found  and  soon." 

"  Have  you  thought,"  proceeded  Mr.  Gryce, 
uterly  ignoring  the  wildness  of  these  statements, 
"  that  the  girl  may  come  back  herself  if  let 
alone  ?  " 

"  She  will  come  back  if  she  can,"  quoth  Mrs. 
Daniels. 

"  Did  she  seem  so  well  satisfied  with  her 
home  as  to  warrant  you  in  saying  that  ?  " 

"  She  liked  her  home,  but  she  laved  me," 
returned  the  woman  steadily.  "  She  loved  me 
so  well  she  would  never  have  gone  as  she 
did  without  being  forced.  Yes,"  said  she, 


Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer.  43 

"  though  she  made  no  outcry  and  stopped  to 
put  on  her  bonnet  and  shawl.  She  was 
not  a  girl  to  make  a  fuss.  If  they  had  killed 

her  outright,  she  would  never  have  uttered  a 

ii 

cry. 

"  Why  do  you  say  they  ?  " 

"  Because  I  am  confident  I  heard  more  than 
one  man's  voice  in  her  room." 

"  Humph  !  Would  you  know  those  voices  if 
you  heard  them  again  ?  " 

"  No." 

There  was  a  surprise  in  this  last  negative 
which  Mr.  Gryce  evidently  noticed. 

"  I  ask,"  said  he,  "  because  I  have  been  told 
that  Mr.  Blake  lately  kept  a  body  servant  who 
has  been  seen  to  look  at  this  girl  more  than 
once,  when  she  has  passed  him  on  the  stairs." 

Mrs.  Daniels'  face  turned  scarlet  with  rage 
and  she  hastily  rose  from  the  chair.  "  I  don't 
believe  it,"  said  she  ;  "  Henry  was  a  man  who 
knew  his  place,  and — I  won't  hear  such  things," 
she  suddenly  exclaimed  ;  "  Emily  was — was  a 
lady,  and — " 

"  Well,  well,"  interposed  Mr.  Gryce  sooth- 
ingly, "  though  the  cat  looks  at  the  king,  it  is 


44  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

no  sign  the  king  looks  at  the  cat.  We  have  to 
think  of  everything  you  know." 

"  You  must  never  think  of  anything  like  that." 

Mr.  Gryce  softly  ran  his  thumb  around  the 
brim  of  the  hat  he  held  in  his  hand.  "  Mrs. 
Daniels,"  observed  he,  "  it  would  greatly  facili- 
tate matters  if  you  would  kindly  tell  us  why  you 
take  such  an  interest  in  this  girl.  One  glimpse 
at  her  real  history  would  do  more  towa  ds  set- 
ting us  on  the  right  track  than  anything  else  you 
could  offer  " 

Her  face  assumed  an  unmistakable  frown. 
"  Have  I  not  told  you,"  said  she,  "  what  is 
known  of  it  ?  That  she  came  to  me  about  two 
years  ago  for  work  ;  that  I  liked  her,  and  so 
hired  her  ;  that  she  has  been  with  us  ever  since 
and — " 

"  Then  you  will  not  tell  us  ?  "  exclaimed  Mr. 
Gryce. 

Her  face  fell  and  a  look  of  hesitation  crossed 
it. 

"  I  doubt  if  we  can  do  anything  unless  you 
do,"  continued  he. 

Her  countenance  settled  again  into  a  resolved 
expression. 


Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer.  4$ 

4<  You  are  mistaken,"  said  she  ;  "  if  the  girl 
had  a  secret — as  nearly  all  girls  have,  brought 
low  as  she  has  evidently  been — it  had  nothing 
to  do  with  her  disappearance,  nor  would  a 
knowledge  of  it  help  you  in  any  way.  I  am 
confident  of  this  and  so  shall  hold  my  peace." 

She  was  not  a  woman  to  be  frightened  or 
cajoled  into  making  revelations  she  did  not 
think  necessary,  and  seeing  it,  Mr.  Gryce  re- 
frained from  urging  her  further. 

"  However,  you  will  at  least  tell  me  this," 
said  he,  "  what  were  the  knick-knacks  she  took 
away  with  her  from  her  bureau  drawer?  " 

"  No,"  said  she,  "  for  they  have  nothing  to  do 
with  her  abduction.  They  were  articles  of 
positive  value  to  her,  though  I  assure  you  of 
little  importance  to  any  one  else.  All  that  is 
shown  by  their  disappearance  is  the  fact  that 
she  had  a  moment's  time  allowed  her  in  which 
to  collect  what  she  most  wanted." 

Mr.  Gryce  arose.  "  Well,"  said  he,  "  you 
have  given  us  a  hard  sum  to  work  out,  but  I  am 
not  the  man  to  recoil  from  anything  hard.  If  I 
can  discover  the  whereabouts  of  this  girl  I  will 
certainly  do  it,  but  you  must  help  me." 


46  Contents  of  a  Bureau  Drawer. 

"I,  how?" 

"  By  inserting  a  personal  in  the  Herald. 
You  say  she  loves  you  ;  and  would  come  back 
if  she  could.  Now  whether  you  believe  it  or 
not  this  is  open  to  doubt ;  therefore  I  would  ad- 
vise that  you  take  some  such  means  as  that  to 
inform  her  of  the  anxiety  of  her  friends  and 
their  desire  to  communicate  with  her." 

"  Impossible,"  she  cried  vehemently.  "  I 
should  be  afraid — " 

"Well?" 

"  I  might  put  it  that  Mrs.  D ,  anxious 

about  Emily,  desires  information  of  her  where- 
abouts— 

"  Put  it  any  way  you  like." 

"  You  had  better  add,"  said  I,  speaking  for 
the  first  time,  "  that  you  would  be  willing  to 
pay  for  information." 

"  Yes,"  said  Mr  Gryce,  "  add  that." 

Mrs.  Daniels  frowned,  but  made  no  objection, 
and  after  getting  as  minute  a  description  as  pos- 
sible of  the  clothing  worn  by  the  girl  the  night 
before,  we  left  the  house. 


CHAPTER  IV. 
THOMPSON'S  STORY. 

"AN  affair  of  some  mystery,"  remarked  Mr, 
•**•  Gryce,  as  we  halted  at  the  corner  to 
take  a  final  look  at  the  house  and  its  environs. 
"  Why  a  girl  should  choose  such  a  method  of 
descent  as  that," — and  he  pointed  to  the  ladder 
down  which  we  believed  her  to  have  come — • 
"  to  leave  a  house  of  which  she  had  been  an 
inmate  for  a  year,  baffles  me,  I  can  tell  you. 
If  it  were  not  for  those  marks  of  blood  which 
betray  her  track,  I  would  be  disinclined  to 
believe  any  such  hare-brained  adventure  was 
ever  perpetrated  by  a  woman.  As  it  is,  what 
would'nt  I  give  for  her  photograph.  Black 
hair,  black  eyes,  white  face  and  thin  figure ! 
what  a  description  whereby  to  find  a  girl  in  this 
great  city  of  New  York.  Ah!"  said  he  with 
sudden  gratification,  "  here  is  Mr.  Blake  again  ; 


48  Thompsons  Story. 

his  appointment  must  have  been  a  failure.  Let 
us  see  if  his  description  will  be  any  more  def- 
inite." And  hurrying  towards  the  advancing 
figure  of  that  gentleman,  he  put  some  questions 
to  him. 

Instantly  Mr.  Blake  stopped,  looked  at  him 
blankly  for  a  moment,  then  replied  in  a  tone 
sufficiently  loud  for  me  to  hear : 

"  I  am  sorry,  sir,  if  my  description  could  have 
done  you  any  good,  but  I  have  not  the  remotest 
idea  how  the  girl  looked.  I  did  not  know 
till  this  morning  even,  that  there  was  such  a 
person  in  my  house  as  a  sewing-woman.  I 
leave  all  such  domestic  concerns  entirely  with 
Mrs.  Daniels." 

Mr.  Gryce  again  bowed  low  and  ventured 
another  question.  The  answer  came  as  before, 
distinctly  to  my  ears. 

"O,  I  may  have  seen  her,  I  can  not  say 
about  that ;  I  very  often  run  across  the  servants 
in  the  hall ;  but  whether  she  is  tall  or  short, 
light  or  dark,  pretty  or  ugly,  I  know  no  more 
than  you  do,  sir."  Then  with  a  dignified  nod 
calculated  to  abash  a  man  in  Mr.  Gryce's  posi« 
tion,  inquired, 

"Is  that  all?" 


Thompsons  Story.  49 

It  did  not  seem  to  be,  Mr.  Gryce  put  another 
question. 

Mr.  Blake  give  him  a  surprised  stare  before 
replying,  then  courteously  remarked, 

"  I  do  not  concern  myself  with  servants  after 
they  have  left  me.  Henry  was  an  excellent 
valet,  but  a  trifle  domineering,  something  which 
I  never  allow  in  any  one  who  approaches  me. 
I  dismissed  him  and  that  was  the  end  of  it, 
I  know  nothing  of  what  has  become  of 
him." 

Mr.  Gryce  bowed  and  drew  back,  and  Mr. 
Blake,  with  the  haughty  step  peculiar  to  him, 
passed  by  him  and  reentered  his  house. 

"  I  should  not  like  to  get  into  that  man's 
clutches,"  said  I,  as  my  superior  rejoined  me ; 
"he  has  a  way  of  making  one  appear  so  small." 

Mr.  Gryce  shot  an  askance  look  at  his  shad- 
ow gloomily  following  him  along  the  pave- 
ment. "  Yet  it  may  happen  that  you  will  have 
to  run  the  risk  of  that  very  experience." 

I  glanced  towards  him  in  amazement. 

"If  the  girl  does  not  turn  up  of  her  own 
accord,  or  if  we  do  not  succeed  in  getting  some 
trace  of  her  movements,  I  shall  be  tempted  to 
place  you  where  you  caii  study  into  the  wayi 


5o  Thompsons  Story. 

of  this  gentleman's  household.  If  the  affair 
is  a  mystery,  it  has  its  centre  in  that  house." 

I  stared  at  Mr.  Gryce  good  and  roundly. 
"  You  have  come  across  something  which  I 
have  missed,"  observed  I,  "  or  you  could  not 
speak  so  positively." 

"  I  have  come  across  nothing  that  was  not  in 
plain  sight  of  any  body  who  had  eyes  to  see  it," 
he  returned  shortly. 

I  shook  my  head  slightly  mortified. 

"  You  had  it  all  before  you,"  continued  he, 
"  and  if  you  were  not  able  to  pick  up  sufficient 
facts  on  which  to  base  a  conclusion,  you  mustn't 
blame  me  for  it." 

More  nettled  than  I  would  be  willing  to  con- 
fess, I  walked  back  with  him  to  the  station,  say- 
ing nothing  then,  but  inwardly  determined  to 
reestablish  my  reputation  with  Mr.  Gryce  before 
the  affair  was  over.  Accordingly  hunting  up 
the  man  who  had  patroled  the  district  the  night 
before,  I  inquired  if  he  had  seen  any  one  go  in 
or  out  of  the  side  gate  of  Mr.  Blake's  house  on 
street,  between  the  hours  of  eleven  and  one. 

"  No," said  he,  "but  I  heard  Thompson  tell  a 
curious  story  this  morning  about  some  one  he 
had  seen." 


Thompsons  Story.  5i 

"  What  was  it  ?  " 

"He  said  he  was  passing  that  way  last 
night  about  twelve  o'clock  when  he  remarked 
standing  under  the  lamp  on  the  corner  of  Sec- 
ond Avenue,  a  group  consisting  of  two  men  and 
a  woman,  who  no  sooner  beheld  him  than  they 
separated,  the  men  drawing  back  into  Second 
Avenue  and  the  woman  coming  hastily  towards 
him.  Not  understanding  the  move,  he  stood 
waiting  her  approach,  when  instead  of  advanc- 
ing to  where  he  was,  she  paused  at  the  gate  of 
Mr.  Blake's  house  and  lifted  her  hand  as  if  to 
open  it,  when  with  a  wild  and  terrified  gesture 
she  started  back,  covering  her  face  with  her 
hands,  and  before  he  knew  it,  had  actually  fled 
in  the  direction  from  which  she  had  come.  A 
little  startled,  Thompson  advanced  and  looked 
through  the  gate  before  him  to  see  if  possible 
what  had  alarmed  her,  when  to  his  great  sur- 
prise, he  beheld  the  pale  face  of  the  master  of 
the  house,  Mr.  Blake  himself,  looking  through 
the  bars  from  the  other  side  of  the  gate.  He 
in  his  turn  started  back  and  before  he  could 
recover  himself,  Mr.  Blake  had  disappeared. 
He  says  he  tried  the  gate  after  that,  but  found 
it  locked." 


52  Thompsons  Story. 

11  Thompson  tells  you  this  story,  does  he  ?  " 

«  Yes." 

"  Well,"  said  I,  "  it's  a  pretty  wild  kind  of  a 
tale,  and  all  I  have  got  to  say  is,  that  neither 
you  nor  Thompson  had  better  go  blabbing  it 
around  too  much.  Mum  is  the  word  where 
such  men  as  Mr.  Blake  are  concerned."  And 
I  departed  to  hunt  up  Thompson. 

But  he  had  nothing  to  add  to  his  statement, 
except  that  the  girl  appeared  to  be  tall  and  thin, 
and  was  closely  wrapped  about  in  a  shawl.  My 
next  move  was  to  make  such  inquiries  as  I 
could  with  safety  into  the  private  concerns  ol 
Mr.  Blake  and  his  family,  and  discovered — well, 
such  facts  as  these  : 

That  Mr.  Blake  was  a  man  who  if  he  paid 
but  little  attention  to  domestic  affairs  was  yet 
rarely  seen  out  of  his  own  house,  except  upon 
occasions  of  great  political  importance,  when 
he  was  always  to  be  found  on  the  platform  at 
meetings  of  his  constituents.  Though  to  the 
ordinary  observer  a  man  eminently  calculated, 
from  his  good  looks,  fine  position,  and  solid 
wealth  to  enjoy  society,  he  not  only  manifested 
a  distaste  for  it,  but  even  went  so  far  as  to  re- 
fuse to  participate  in  the  social  dinners  of  his 


Tliompsoris  Story.  5  3 

most  intimate  friends  ;  the  only  table  to  which 
he  would  sit  down  being  that  of  some  public 
caterer,  where  he  was  sure  of  finding  none  but 
his  political  associates  assembled. 

To  all  appearance  he  wished  to  avoid  the 
ladies,  a  theory  borne  out  by  the  fact  that 
never,  even  in  church,  on  the  street,  or  at  any 
place  of  amusement,  was  he  observed  with  one. 
at  his  side.  This  fact  in  a  man,  young — he  was 
not  far  from  thirty-five  at  that  time — rich,  and 
marriageable,  would,  however,  have  been  more 
noteworthy  than  it  was  if  he  had  not  been 
known  to  belong  to  a  family  eminent  for  their 
eccentricities.  Not  a  man  of  all  his  race  but 
had  possessed  some  marked  peculiarity.  His 
father,  bibliomaniac  though  he  was,  would 
never  treat  a  man  or  a  woman  with  decency, 
who  mentioned  Shakspeare  to  him,  nor  would 
he  acknowledge  to  his  dying  day  any  excellence 
in  that  divine  poet  beyond  a  happy  way  of  put- 
ting words  together.  Mr.  Blake's  uncle  hated 
all  members  of  the  legal  profession,  and  as  for 
his  grandfather — but  you  have  heard  what  a 
mania  ot  dislike  he  had  against  that  simple 
article  of  diet,  fish  ;  how  his  friends  were 


54  Thompsons  Story. 

obliged  to  omit  it  from  their  bills  of  fare  when- 
ever they  expected  him  to  dinner.  If  then  Mr, 
Blake  chose  to  have  any  pet  antipathy — as  for 
women  for  instance — he  surely  had  precedent 
enough  in  his  own  family  to  back  him.  How- 
ever, it  was  whispered  in  my  ear  by  one  gentle- 
man, a  former  political  colleague  of  his  who  had 
been  with  him  in  Washington,  that  he  was 
known  at  one  time  to  show  considerable  atten- 
tion to  Miss  Evelyn  Blake,  that  cousin  of  his 
who  has  since  made  such  a  brilliant  thing  of  it 
by  marrying,  and  straightway  losing  by  death, 
a  wealthy  old  scapegrace  of  a  French  noble, 
the  Count  De  Mirac.  But  that  was  not 
a  matter  to  be  talked  about,  Madame  the 
Countess  being  free  at  present  and  in  New 
York,  though  to  all  appearance  upon  anything 
but  pleasant  terms  with  her  quondam  admirer. 
Remembering  the  picture  I  had  seen  in  Mr, 
Blake's  private  apartment,  I  asked  if  this  lady 
was  a  brunette,  and  being  told  she  was,  and  of 
the  most  pronounced  type,  felt  for  the  moment 
I  had  stumbled  upon  something  in  the  shape  of 
a  clue  ;  but  upon  resorting  to  Mr.  Gryce  with 
my  information,  he  shook  his  head  with  a  short 


Thompsons  Story.  55 

laugh  and  told  me  I  would  have  to  dive  deeper 
than  that  if  I  wanted  to  fish  up  the  truth  lyiiwt 
at  the  bottom  of  this  welL 


CHAPTER  V. 
A  NEW  YORK  BELLE. 

A  TEAN WHILE  all  our  efforts  to  obtain  in 
*»  v*1  formation  in  regard  to  the  fate  or  where- 
abouts of  the  missing  girl,  had  so  far  proved 
utterly  futile.  Even  the  advertisements  inserted 
by  Mrs.  Daniels  had  produced  no  effect ;  and 
frustrated  in  my  scheme  I  began  to  despair, 
when  the  accounts  of  that  same  Mrs.  Daniel's 
strange  and  unaccountable  behavior  during 
these  days  of  suspense,  which  came  to  me 
through  Fanny,  (the  pretty  housemaid  at  Mr. 
Blake's,  whose  acquaintance  I  had  lately  taken 
to  cultivating,)  aroused  once  more  my  dormant 
energies  and  led  me  to  ask  myself  if  the  affair 
was  quite  as  hopeless  as  it  seemed. 

"  If  she  was  a  ghost,"  was  her  final  express- 
ion on  the  subject,  "  she  could'nt  go  peramber- 
lating  this  house  more  than  she  does.  It  seems 

56 


A  New   York  Belh.  5/ 

as  if  she  could'nt  keep  still  a  minute.  Upstairs 
and  down,  upstairs  and  down,  till  we're  most 
wild.  And  so  white  as  she  is  and  so  trembling ! 
Why,  her  hands  shake  so  all  the  time  she  never 
dares  lift  a  dish  off  the  table.  And  then  the 
way  she  hangs  about  Mr.  Blake's  door  when 
he's  at  home !  She  never  goes  in,  that's  the 
oddest  part  of  it,  but  walks  up  and  down  before 
it,  wringing  her  hands  and  talking  to  herself 
just  like  a  mad  woman.  Why,  I  have  seen  her 
almost  put  her  hand  on  the  knob  twice  in  an 
afternoon  perhaps,  then  draw  back  as  if  she  was 
afraid  it  would  burn  her  ;  and  if  by  any  chance 
the  door  opened  and  Mr.  Blake  came  out,  you 
ought  to  have  seen  how  she  run.  What  it  all 
means  I  don't  know,  but  I  have  my  imagin- 
ings, and  if  she  is'nt  crazy,  why — "  etc.,  etc. 

In  face  of  facts  like  these  I  felt  it  would  be 
pure  insanity  to  despair.  Let  there  be  but  a 
mystery,  though  it  involved  a  man  of  the  posi- 
tion of  Mr.  Blake  and  I  was  safe.  My  only  ap- 
prehension had  been  that  the  whole  affair  would 
dissolve  itself  into  an  ordinary  elopement  or 
some  such  common-place  matter, 

When,  therefore,  a  few  minutes  later,  Fanny 


58  A  New   York  Belle. 

announced  that  Mr.  Blake  had  ordered  a  car- 
riage to  take  him  to  the  Charity  Ball  that  even- 
ing,  I   determined  to  follow  him  and  learn  if 
possible  what  change  had  taken  place  in  himseli 
or  his  circumstances,  to  lead  him  into  such  an 
innovation  upon  his  usual  habits.     Though  the 
hour  was  late  I  had  but  little  difficulty  in  carry- 
ing  out   my  plan,    arriving   at   the    Academy 
something  less  than  an  hour  after  the  opening 
dance. 

The  crowd  was  great  and  I  circulated  the 
floor  three  times  before  I  came  upon  him. 
When  I  did,  I  own  I  was  slightly  disappointed ; 
for  instead  of  finding  him  as  I  anticipated,  the 
centre  of  an  admiring  circle  of  ladies  and  gentle- 
men, I  espied  him  withdrawn  into  a  corner 
with  a  bland  old  politician  of  the  Fifteenth 
Ward,  discussing,  as  I  presently  overheard,  the 
merits  and  demerits  of  a  certain  Smith  who  at 
that  time  was  making  some  disturbance  in  the 
party. 

"  If  that  is  all  he  has  come  for,"  thought  I,  "I 
had  better  have  stayed  at  home  and  made  love 
to  the  pretty  Fanny."  And  somewhat  cha- 
grined, I  took  up  my  stand  near  by,  and  began 
scrutinizing  the  ladies. 


A  New   York  Belle.  5$ 

Suddenly  I  felt  my  heart  stand  still,  the  noise 
of  voices  ceasing  the  same  instant  behind  me. 
A  lady  was  passing  on  the  arm  of  a  foreign- 
looking  gentleman,  whom  it  did  not  require  a 
second  glance  to  identify  with  the  subject  of  the 
portrait  in  Mr.  Blake's  house.    Older  by  some 
few  years   than  when  her  picture  was  painted, 
her  beauty  had  assumed  a  certain  defiant  ex- 
pression that  sufficiently  betrayed  the  fact  that 
the  years  had  not  been  so  wholly  happy  as  she 
had  probably  anticipated  when  she  jilted  hand- 
some Holman  Blake  for  the  old  French  Count. 
At  all  events  so  I  interpreted  the  look  of  latent 
scorn    that   burned    in  her  dark    eyes,    as  she 
slowly  turned  her  richly  bejeweled  head  towards 
the  corner   where  that  gentleman   stood,  and 
meeting  his  eyes  no  doubt,  bowed  with  a  sud- 
den   loss    of  self-possession   that   not   all   the 
haughty  carriage  of  her  noble  form,  held  doubly 
erect  for  the  next  few  moments,   could  quite 
conceal  or  make  forgotten. 

"  She  still  loves  him,"  I  inwardly  commented 
and  turned  to  see  if  the  surprise  had  awakened 
any  expression  on  his  uncommunicative  coun- 
tenance. 


60  A  New   York  Belle. 

Evidently  not,  for  the  tough  old  politician  oi 
the  Fifteenth  Ward  was  laughing,  at  one  of  his 
own  jokes  probably,  and  looking  up  in  the  face 
of  Mr.  Blake,  whose  back  was  turned  to  me,  in 
a  way  that  entirely  precluded  all  thought  of 
any  tragic  expression  in  that  quarter.  Some- 
what disgusted,  I  withdrew  and  followed  the 
lady. 

I  could  not  get  very  near.  By  this  time  the 
presence  of  a  live  countess  in  the  assembly  had 
become  known,  and  I  found  her  surrounded  by 
a  swarm  of  half- fledged  youths.  But  I  cared 
little  for  this  ;  all  I  wanted  to  know  was  whether 
Mr.  Blake  would  approach  her  or  not  during 
the  evening.  Tediously  the  moments  passed  ; 
but  a  detective  on  duty,  or  on  fancied  duty,  suc- 
cumbs to  no  weariness.  I  had  a  woman  before 
me  worth  studying  and  the  time  could  not  be 
thrown  away.  I  learned  to  know  her  beauty  ; 
the  poise  of  her  head,  the  flush  of  her  cheek, 
the  curl  of  her  lip,  the  glance — yes,  the  glance 
of  her  eye,  though  that  was  more  difficult  to 
understand,  for  she  had  a  way  of  drooping  her 
lids  at  times  that,  while  exceedingly  effective 
upon  the  poor  wretch  toward  whom  she  might 


A  New   York  Belle.  61 

be  directing  that  half- veiled  shaft  of  light,  was 
anything  but  conducive  to  my  purposes. 

At  length  with  a  restless  shrug  of  her  haughty 
shoulders  she  turned  away  from  her  crowd  of 
adorers,  her  breast  heaving  under  its  robing  of 
garnet  velvet,  and  her  whole  face  flaring  with  a 
light  that  might  mean  resolve  and  might  mean 
simply  love.  I  had  no  need  to  turn  my  head 
to  see  who  was  advancing  towards  her  ;  her 
stately  attitude  as  countess,  her  thrilling  glance 
as  woman,  betrayed  only  too  readily. 

He  was  the  more  composed  of  the  two. 
Bowing  over  her  hand  with  a  few  words  I  could 
not  hear,  he  drew  back  a  step  and  began  utter- 
ing the  usual  common-place  sentiments  of  the 
occasion. 

She  did  not  respond.  With  a  splendor  of  in- 
difference not  often  seen  even  in  the  manner  of 
our  grandest  ladies,  she  waited,  opening  and 
shutting  her  richly  feathered  fan,  as  one  who 
would  say,  "  I  know  all  this  has  to  be  gone 
through  with,  therefore  I  will  be  patient."  But 
as  the  moments  passed,  and  his  tone  remained 
unchanged,  I  could  detect  a  slight  gleam  of  im- 
patience flash  in  the  depths  of  her  dark  eyes, 


62  A  New   York  Belle. 

and  a  change  come  into  the  conventional  smile 
that  had  hitherto  lighted,  without  illuminating 
her  countenance.  Drawing  still  further  back 
from  the  crowd  that  was  not  to  be  awed  from 
pressing  upon  her,  she  looked  around  as  if 
seeking  a  refuge.  Her  glance  fell  upon  a  cer- 
tain window,  with  a  gleam  of  satisfaction.  See- 
ing they  would  straightway  withdraw  there,  I 
took  advantage  of  the  moment  and  made  haste 
to  conceal  myself  behind  a  curtain  as  near  that 
vicinity  as  possible.  In  another  instant  I  heard 
them  approaching. 

"  You  seem  to  be  rather  overwhelmed  with 
attention  to-night,"  were  the  first  words  I 
caught,  uttered  in  Mr.  Blake's  calmest  and 
most  courteous  tones. 

"  Do  you  think  so  ? "  was  the  slightly  sar- 
castic reply.  "  I  was  just  deciding  to  the  con- 
trary when  you  came  up." 

There  was  a  pause.  Taking  out  my  knife,  I 
ripped  open  a  seam  in  the  curtain  hanging  be- 
fore me,  and  looked  through.  He  was  eyeing 
her  intently,  a  firm  look  upon  his  face  that 
made  its  reserve  more  marked  than  common. 
I  saw  him  gaze  at  her  handsome  head  piled 


A  New   York  Belle.  63 

with  its  midnight  tresses  amid  which  the  jewels, 
doubtless  of  her  dead  lord,  burned  with  a  fierce 
and  ominous  glare,  at  her  smooth  olive  brow, 
her  partly  veiled  eyes  where  the  fire  passion- 
ately blazed, at  her  scarlet  lips  trembling  with  an 
emotion  her  rapidly  flushing  cheeks  would  not 
allow  her  to  conceal.  I  saw  his  glances  fall  and 
embrace  her  whole  elegant  form  with  its  casing 
of  ruby  velvet  and  ornamentation  of  lace  and 
diamonds,  and  an  expectant  thrill  passed  through 
me  almost  as  if  I  already  beheld  the  mask  of  his 
reserve  falling,  and  the  true  man  flash  out  ir? 
response  to  the  wooing  beauty  of  this  full-blown 
rose,  evidently  in  waiting  for  him.  But  it  died 
away  and  a  deeper  feeling  seized  me  as  I  saw 
his  glances  return  unkindled  to  her  counten- 
ance, and  heard  him  say  in  still  more  measured 
accents  than  before  : 

"  Is  it  possible  then  that  the  Countess  De 
Mirac  can  desire  the  adulation  of  us  poor 
American  plebeians  ?  I  had  not  thought  it, 
madame." 

Slowly  her  dark  eyes  turned  towards  him ; 
she  stood  a  statue. 

"  But  I  forget,"  he  went  on,  a  tinge  of  bitter- 


64  A  New   York  Belle. 

ness  for  a  moment  showing  itself  in  his  smile : 
"  perhaps  in  returning  to  her  own  country, 
Evelyn  Blake  has  so  far  forgotten  the  last  two 
years  as  to  find  pleasure  again  in  the  toys  and 
foibles  of  her  youth.  Such  things  have  been,  I 
hear."  And  he  bowed  almost  to  the  ground  in 
his  half  sarcastic  homage. 

"  Evelyn  Blake !  It  is  long  since  I  have 
heard  that  name,"  she  murmured. 

-  He  could  not  restrain  the  quick  flush  from 
mounting  to  his  brow.  "  Pardon  me,"  said  he, 
"  if  it  brings  you  sadness  or  unwelcome  memo- 
ries. I  promise  you  I  will  not  so  transgress 
again." 

A  wan  smile  crossed  her  lips  grown  suddenly 
pallid. 

"  You  mistake,"  said  she  ;  "  if  my  name 
brings  up  a  past  laden  with  bitter  memories 
and  shadowed  by  regret,  it  also  recalls  much 
that  is  pleasant  and  never  to  be  forgotten.  I 
do  not  object  to  hearing  my  girlhood's  name 
uttered — by  my  nearest  relative." 

The  answer  was  dignity  itself.  "  Your  name 
is  Countess  De  Mirac,  your  relatives  must  be 
groud  to  utter  it." 


A  New   York  Belle.  63 

A  gleam  not  unlike  the  lightning's  quick  flash 
shot  from  the  eyes  she  drooped  before  him. 

"  Is  it  Holman  Blake  I  am  listening  to,"  said 
she  ;  "  I  do  not  recognize  my  old  friend  in  the 

cool  and  sarcastic  man  of  the  world  now  before 

» 
me. 

"  We  often  fail  to  recognize  the  work  of  our 
hands,  madame,  after  it  has  fallen  from  our 
grasp." 

"  What,"  she  cried,  "  do  you  mean — would 
you  say  that — " 

"  I  would  say  nothing,"  interrupted  he  calmly, 
stooping  for  the  fan  she  had  dropped.  "  At  an 
interview  which  is  at  once  a  meeting  and  a 
parting,  I  would  give  utterance  to  nothing 
which  would  seem  like  recrimination.  I — " 

"  Wait,"  suddenly  exclaimed  she,  reaching 
out  her  hand  for  her  fan  with  a  gesture  lofty  as 
it  was  resolute.  "  You  have  spoken  a  word 
which  demands  explanation  ;  what  have  I  ever 
done  to  you  that  you  should  speak  the  word 
recrimination  to  me  ?  " 

"  What  ?  You  shook  my  faith  in  woman- 
kind ;  you  showed  me  that  a  woman  who  had 
once  told  a  man  she  loved  him,  could  so  far 


66  A  New   York  Belle. 

forget  that  love  as  to  marry  one  she  could 
never  respect,  for  the  sake  of  titles  and  jewels. 
You  showed  me — " 

"  Hold,"  said  she  again,  this  time  without 
gesture  or  any  movement,  save  that  of  her  lips 
grown  pallid  as  marble,  "  and  what  did  you 
show  me  ?  " 

He  started,  colored  profoundly,  and  for  a 
moment  stood  before  her  unmasked  of  his  stern 
self-possession.  "  I  beg  your  pardon,"  said  he, 
"  I  take  back  that  word,  recrimination." 

It  was  now  her  turn  to  lift  her  head  and  sur- 
vey him.  With  glance  less  cool  than  his,  but 
fully  as  deliberate,  she  looked  at  his  proud  head 
bending  before  her ;  studying  his  face,  line  by 
line,  from  the  stern  brow  to  the  closely  com- 
pressed lips  on  which  melancholy  seemed  to 
have  set  its  everlasting  seal,  and  a  change 
passed  over  her  countenance.  "  Holman,"  said 
she,  with  a  sudden  rush  of  tenderness,  "  if  in 
the  times  gone  by,  we  both  behaved  with  too 
much  worldly  prudence  for  it  now  to  be  any- 
great  pleasure  for  either  of  us  to  look  back,  is 
that  any  reason  why  we  should  mar  our  whole 
future  by  dwelling  too  long  upon  what  we  are 


A  New   York  Belle.  67 

surely  still  young  enough  to  bury  if  not  forget  ? 
I  acknowledge  that  I  would  have  behaved  in 
a  more  ideal  fashion,  if,after  I  had  been  forsaken 
by  you,  I  had  turned  my  face  from  society,  and 
let  the  canker-worm  of  despair  slowly  destroy 
whatever  life  and  bloom  I  had  left.  But  I  was 
young,  and  society  had  its  charms,  so  did  the 
prospect  of  wealth  and  position,  however  hol- 
low they  may  have  proved  ;  you  who  are  the 
master  of  both  this  day,  because  twelve  months 
ago  you  forsook  Evelyn  Blake,  should  be  the 
last  to  reproach  me  with  them.  /  do  not  re- 
proach you  ;  I  only  say  let  the  past  be  forgot- 
ten— " 

"Impossible,"  exclaimed  he,  his  whole  face 
darkening  with  an  expression  I  could  not  fath- 
om. "  What  was  done  at  that  time  cannot  be 
undone.  For  you  and  me  there  is  no  future. 
Yes,"  he  said  turning  towards  her  as  she  made 
a  slight  fluttering  move  of  dissent,  "  no  future', 
we  can  bury  the  past,  but  we  can  not  resurrect 
it.  I  doubt  if  you  would  wish  to  if  we  could  ; 
as  we  cannot,  of  course  you  will  not  desire  even 
to  converse  upon  the  subject  again.  Evelyn  I 
wanted  to  see  you  once,  but  I  do  not  wish  to 


68  A  New   York  Belle. 

see  you  again ;  will  you  pardon  my  plain  speak- 
ing, and  release  me  ?  " 

"I  will  pardon  your  plain  speaking,  but — " 
Her  look  said  she  would  not  release  him. 

He  seemed  to  understand  it  so,  and  smiled, 
but  very  bitterly.  In  another  moment  he  had 
bowed  and  gone,  and  she  had  returned  to  her 
crowd  of  adoring  sycophants. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

A  BIT  OF  CALICO. 

IT  was  about  this  time  that  I  took  <i£  my  resi- 
dence in  a  sort  of  lodging- ho«?^  mat  occu- 
pied the  opposite  corner  to  that  of  Mr.  Blake. 
My  room,  as  I  took  pains  to  have  it,  overlooked 
the  avenue,  and  from  its  window*  I  could  easily 
watch  the  goings  and  comings  of  the  gentleman 
whose  movements  were  daily  becoming  of  more 
and  more  interest  to  me.     For  set  it  down  to 
caprice — and  men  are  often  as   capricious  as 
women — or  account  for  it  as  you  will,  his  rest- 
lessness at  this  period  was  truly  remarkable. 
Not  a  day  that  he  did  not  spend  his  time  in 
walking  the  streets,  and  that  not  in  his  usual 
aimless  gentlemanly   fashion,   but  eagerly  and 
with  an  intent  gaze  that  roamed  here  and  there, 
like  a  bird  seeking  its  prey.     It  would  often  be 
as  late  as  five  o'clock  before  he  came  in,  and  if, 


7O  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

as  now  frequently  happened,  he  did  not  have 
company  to  dinner,  he  was  even  known  to  start 
out  again  after  seven  o'clock  and  go  over  the 
same  ground  as  in  the  morning,  looking  with 
strained  gaze,  that  vainly  endeavored  to  appear 
unconcerned,  into  the  faces  of  the  women  that 
he  passed.     I  not  unfrequently  followed  him  at 
these  times  as  much  for  my  own  amusement  as 
from  any  hope  I  had  of  coming  upon  anything 
that  should  aid  me  in  the  work  before  me.     But 
when  he  suddenly  changed  his  route  of  travel 
from  a  promenade  in  the  fashionable  thorough- 
fares of  Broadway  and  Fourteenth  Street  to  a 
walk  through  Chatham  Square  and  the  dark, 
narrow  streets  of  the  East  side,  I  began  to  scent 
whom  the  prey  might  be  that  he  was  seeking, 
and  putting  every  other  consideration  aside,  reg- 
ularly set  myself  to  dog  his  steps,  as  only  I,  with 
my  innumerable  disguises,  knew  how  to  do.  For 
three  separate  days  I  kept  at  his  heels  wher- 
ever he  went,  each  day  growing  more  and  more 
astonished  if  not  to  say  hopeful,  as  I  found  my- 
self treading  the  narrowest  and  most  disrepu- 
table streets  of  the  city  ;  halting  at  the  shops  ot 
pawnbrokers  ;    peering  into  the  back-rooms  ol 


A  Bit  of  Calico.  71 

liquor  shops  ;  mixing  with  the  crowds  that  infest 
the  corner  groceries  at  nightfall,  and  even  slink- 
ing  with  hand  on  the  trigger  of  the  pistol  I 
carried  in  my  pocket,  up  dark   alleys  where 
every  door  that  swung  noiselessly  to  and  fro 
as  we  passed,  shut  upon  haunts  of  such  villainy 
as  only  is  known  to  us  of  the  police,  or  to  those 
good  souls  that  for  the  sake  of  One  whose  ex- 
ample they  follow,  lay  aside  their  fears  and  sen- 
sitiveness to  carry  light  into  the  dim  pits  of  this 
wretched  world.     At  first  I  thought  Mr.  Blake 
might  have  some  such  reason  for  the  peculiar 
course  he  took.     But   his   indifference   to   all 
crowds   where   only   men   were   collected,  his 
silence  where  a  word  would  have  been  well 
received,  convinced  me  it  was  a  woman  he  was 
seeking   and    that   with    an   intentness    which 
blinded  him  to  the  commonest   needs  of  the 
hour.     I  even  saw  him  once  in  his  hurry  and 
abstraction,  step  across  the  body  of  a  child  who 
had  fallen  face  downward  on  the  stones,  and 
that  with  an  expression  showing  he  was  utterly 
unconscious  of  anything  but  an  obstacle  in  his 
path.     The  strangest  part  of  it  all  was  that  he 
seemed  to  have  no  fear.     To  be  sure  he  took 


72  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

pains  to  leave  his  watch  at  home  ;  but  witfe 
such  a  figure  and  carriage  as  he  possessed,  the 
absence  of  jewelry  could  never  deceive  the  eye 
for  a  moment  as  to  the  fact  of  his  being  a  man 
of  wealth,  and  those  he  went  among  would  dc 
anything  for  money.  Perhaps,  like  me,  he  car- 
ried a  pistol.  At  all  events  he  shunned  no 
spot  where  either  poverty  lay  hid  or  deviltry 
reigned,  his  proud  stern  head  bending  to  enter 
the  lowest  doors  without  a  tremble  of  the 
haughty  lips  that  remained  compressed  as  by 
an  iron  force ;  except  when  some  poor  forlorn 
creature  with  flaunting  head-gear,  and  tremu- 
lous hands,  attracted  by  his  bearing  would 
hastily  brush  against  him,  when  he  would  turn 
and  look,  perhaps  speak,  though  what  he  said 
I  always  failed  to  catch ;  after  which  he  would 
hurry  on  as  if  possessed  by  seven  devils.  The 
evenings  of  those  three  days  were  notable  also. 
Two  of  them  he  spent  in  the  manner  I  have  de- 
scribed ;  the  third  he  went  to  the  Windsor 
House — where  the  Countess  De  Mirac  had 
taken  rooms — going  up  to  the  ladies'  entrance 
and  actually  ringing  the  bell,  only  to  start  back 
and  walk  up  and  down  on  the  opposite  side  of 


A  Bit  of  Calico. 


73 


the  way,  with  his  hands  behind  his  back,  and 
his  head  bent,  evidently  deliberating  as  to 
whether  he  shoulcL^j^  should  not  carry  out  his 
original  intention  OT^l^ering.  The  arrival  of  a 
carriage  with  the  st&bl^subject  of  his  deliber- 


reception, speedily 

As  the  door  opened  to 

cast  one  look  at  her  heavil 


ations,    who  from  her^efejborate   costume  had 
seemingly  been  to  son*?  k$$t!\$drum   or  private 

his  doubts. 
I  saw  him 
erson,  with 
over  the 
ed  silk,  and 
a  sigh  of 
for  the 


its  snowy  opera-cloak  dra\m 

sweeping  folds  of  her  maize 

shrink  back  with  what  soundec 

anger  or  distrust,  and  without 

closing  of  the  door  upon  her,  turn^fe^rd  home 

with  a  step  that  hesitated  no  long*?. 

The  fourth  day  to  my  infinite  chagrin,  I  was 
sick  and  could  not  go  with  him.  All  I  could  do 
was  to  wrap  myself  in  blankets  and  sit  in  my 
window  from  which  I  had  the  satisfaction  of 
viewing  him  start  as  I  supposed  upon  his  usual 
course.  The  rest  of  the  day  was  employed  in 
a  long,  dull  waiting  for  his  return,  only  relieved 
by  casual  glimpses  of  Mrs.  Daniels'  troubled 
face  as  she  appeared  at  one  window  or  another 


74  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

of  the  old-fashioned  mansion  before  me.  She 
seemed,  too,  to  be  unusually  restless,  open- 
ing the  windows  and  looking  out  with  forlorn 
cranings  of  her  neck  as  if  she  too  were  watching 
for  her  master.  Indeed  I  have  no  doubt  from 
what  I  afterwards  learned,  that  she  was  in  a 
state  of  constant  suspense  during  these  days. 
Her  frequent  appearance  at  the  station  house, 
where  she  in  vain  sought  for  some  news  of  the 
girl  in  whose  fate  she  was  so  absorbed,  con- 
firmed this.  Only  the  day  before  I  gave  my- 
self up  to  my  unreserved  espionage  of  Mr. 
Blake,  she  had  had  an  interview  with  Mr.  Gryce 
in  which  she  had  let  fall  her  apprehensions  that 
the  girl  was  dead,  and  asked  whether  if  that 
were  the  case,  the  police  would  be  likely  to 
come  into  a  knowledge  of  the  fact.  Upon  be- 
ing assured  that  if  she  had  not  been  privately 
made  way  with,  there  was  every  chance  in  their 
favor,  she  had  grown  a  little  calmer,  but  before 
going  away  had  so  far  forgotten  herself  as  to 
intimate  that  if  some  result  was  not  reached  be- 
fore another  fortnight  had  elapsed,  she  should 
take  the  matter  into  her  own  hands  and — She 
did  not  say  what  she  would  do,  but  her  looks 


A  Bit  of  Calico.  7  5 

were  of  a  very  menacing  character.  It  was  no 
wonder,  then,  that  her  countenance  bore  marks 
of  the  keenest  anxiety  as  she  trod  the  halls  of 
that  dim  old  mansion,  with  its  dusky  corners 
rich  with  bronzes  and  the  glimmering  shine  of 
ancient  brocades,  breathing  suggestions  of  loss 
and  wrong  ;  or  bent  her  wrinkled  forehead  to 
gaze  from  the  windows  for  the  coming  of  one 
whose  footsteps  were  ever  delayed.  She  hap- 
pened to  be  looking  out,  when  after  a  longer 
stroll  than  usual  the  master  of  the  house  re- 
turned. As  he  made  his  appearance  at  the 
corner,  I  saw  her  hurriedly  withdraw  her  head 
and  hide  herself  behind  the  curtain,  from  which 
position  she  watched  him  as  with  tired  steps 
and  somewhat  dejected  mien,  he  passed  up  the 
steps  and  entered  the  house.  Not  till  the  door 
closed  upon  him,  did  she  venture  to  issue  forth 
and  with  a  hurried  movement  shut  the  blinds 
and  disappear.  This  anxiety  on  her  part  re- 
doubled mine,  and  thankful  enough  was  I  when 
on  the  next  day  I  found  myself  well  enough  to 
renew  my  operations.  To  ferret  out  this  mys- 
tery, if  mystery  it  was, — I  still  found  myself 
forced  to  admit  the  possibility  of  there  being 


76  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

none — had  now  become  the  one  ambition  of  my 
life  ;  and  all  because  it  was  not  only  an  unusu- 
ally blind  one,  but  of  a  nature  that  involved 
danger  to  my  position  as  detective,  I  entered 
upon  it  with  a  zest  rare  even  to  me  who  love 
my  work  and  all  it  involves  with  an  undivided 
passion. 

To  equip  myself,  then,  in  a  fresh  disguise 
and  to  join  Mr.  Blake  shortly  after  he  had  left 
his  own  corner,  was  anything  but  a  hardship 
to  me  that  bright  winter  morning,  though  I 
knew  from  past  experience,  a  long  and  weari- 
some walk  was  before  me  with  nothing  in  all 
probability  at  the  end  but  reiterated  disappoint- 
ment.  But  for  once  the  fates  had  willed  it 
otherwise.  Whether  Mr.  Blake,  discouraged 
at  the  failure  of  his  own  attempts,  whatever 
they  were,  felt  less  heart  to  prosecute  them  than 
usual  I  cannot  say,  but  we  had  scarcely  entered 
upon  the  lower  end  of  the  Bowery,  before  he 
suddenly  turned  with  a  look  of  disgust,  and 
gazing  hurriedly  about  him,  hailed  a  Madison 
Avenue  car  that  was  rapidly  approaching.  I 
was  at  that  moment  on  the  other  side  of  the 
way,  but  I  hurried  forward  too,  and  signaled 


A  Bit  of  Calico.  77 

the  same  car.  But  just  as  I  was  on  the  point 
of  entering  it  I  perceived  Mr.  Blake  step  hastily 
back  and  with  his  eyes  upon  a  girl  that  was 
hurrying  past  him  with  a  basket  on  her  arm, 
regain  the  sidewalk  with  a  swiftness  that 
argued  his  desire  to  stop  her.  Of  course  I 
let  the  car  pass  me,  though  I  did  not  dare 
approach  him  too  closely  after  my  late  con- 
spicious  attempt  to  enter  it  with  him.  But 
from  my  stand  on  the  opposite  curb-stone  I 
saw  him  draw  aside  the  girl,  who  from  her  gar- 
ments might  have  been  the  daughter  or  wife 
of  any  one  of  the  shiftless,  drinking  wretches 
lounging  about  on  the  four  corners  within 
my  view,  and  after  talking  earnestly  with  her 
for  a  few  moments,  saunter  at  her  side  down 
Broome  Street,  still  talking.  Reckless  at  this 
sight  of  the  consequences  which  might  follow 
his  detection  of  the  part  I  was  playing,  I  hasted 
after  them,  when  I  was  suddenly  disconcerted 
by  observing  him  hurriedly  separate  from  the 
girl  and  turn  towards  me  with  intention  as  it 
were  to  regain  the  corner  he  had  left.  Weigh- 
ing in  an  instant  the  probable  good  to  be  ob- 
tained by  following  either  party,  I  determined 


7  8  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

to  leave  Mr.  Blake  for  one  day  to  himself,  and 
turn  my  attention  to  the  girl  he  had  addressed, 
especially  as  she  was  tall  and  thin  and  bore 
herself  with  something  like  grace. 

Barely  bestowing  a  glance  upon  him,  then,  as 
he  passed,  in  a  vain  attempt  to  read  the  sombre 
expression  of  his  inscrutable  face  grown  five 
years  older  in  the  last  five  days,  I  shuffled  after 
the  girl  now  flitting  before  me  down  Broome 
Street.  As  I  did  so,  I  noticed  her  dress  to  its 
minutest  details,  somewhat  surprised  to  find 
how  ragged  and  uncouth  it  was.  That  Mr. 
Blake  should  stop  a  girl  wherever  seen,  clad  in 
a  black  alpaca  frock,  a  striped  shawl  and  a 
Bowery  hat  trimmed  with  feathers,  I  could 
easily  understand  ;  but  that  this  creature  with 
her  faded  calico  dress,  dingy  cape  thrown  care- 
lessly over  her  head,  and  ragged  basket,  should 
arrest  his  attention,  was  a  riddle  to  me. 
I  hastened  forward  with  intent  to  catch  a 
glimpse  of  her  countenence  if  possible  ;  but  she 
seemed  to  have  acquired  wings  to  her  feet 
since  her  interview  with  Mr.  Blake.  Darting 
into  a  crowd  of  hooting  urchins  that  were  rush- 
ing from  Centre  Street  after  a  broken  wagon 


A  Bit  of  Calico.  79 

and  runaway  horse,  she  sped  from  my  sight 
with  such  rapidity,  I  soon  saw  that  my  only 
hope  of  overtaking  her  lay  in  running.  I  ac- 
cordingly quickened  my  steps  when  those  same 
hooting  youngsters  getting  in  the  way  of  my 
feet,  I  tripped  up  and — well,  I  own  I  retired 
from  that  field  baffled.  Not  entirely  so,  how- 
ever. Just  as  I  was  going  down,  I  caught  sight 
of  the  girl  tearing  away  from  a  box  of  garbage 
on  the  curb-stone  ;  and  when  order  having 
been  restored,  by  which  lofty  statement  I  mean 
to  say  when  your  humble  servant  had  regained 
his  equilibrium,  I  awoke  to  the  fact  that  she  had 
effectually  disappeared,  I  hurried  to  that  box 
and  succeeded  in  finding  hanging  to  it  a  bit  of 
rag  easily  recognized  as  a  piece  of  the  old  calico 
frock  of  nameless  color  which  I  had  been  fol- 
lowing a  moment  before.  Regarding  it  as  the 
sole  spoils  of  a  very  unsatisfactory  day's  work, 
I  put  it  carefully  away  in  my  pocket  book, 
where  it  lay  till — But  with  all  my  zeal  for  com- 
pression, I  must  not  anticipate. 

When  I  came  home  that  afternoon  I  found 
myself  unexpectedly  involved  in  a  matter  that 
for  the  remainder  of  the  day  at  least,  prevented 


8o  A  Bit  of  Calico. 

me  from  further  attending  to  the  affair  I  had  in 
hand.  The  next  morning  Mr.  Blake  did  not 
start  out  as  usual,  and  at  noon  I  received  inti- 
mation from  Fanny  that  he  was  preparing  to 
take  a  journey.  Where,  she  could  not  inform 
me,  nor  when,  though  she  thought  it  probable 
he  would  take  an  early  train.  Mrs.  Daniels 
was  feeling  dreadfully,  she  informed  me  ;  and 
the  house  was  like  a  grave.  Greatly  excited 
at  this  unexpected  move  on  Mr.  Blake's  part, 
I  went  home  and  packed  my  valise  with 
something  of  the  spirit  of  her  who  once  said, 
under  somewhat  different  circumstances  I  allow, 
"Whither  thou  goest  I  will  go." 

The  truth  was,  I  had  travelled  so  far  and 
learned  so  little,  that  my  professional  pride  v/as 
piqued.  That  expression  of  Mr.  Gryce  still 
rankled,  and  nothing  could  soothe  my  injured 
spirit  now  but  success.  Accordingly  when  Mr. 
Blake  stepped  up  to  the  ticket  office  of  the 
Hudson  River  Railroad  next  morning,  to  buy 
a  ticket  for  Putney,  a  small  town  in  the  north- 
ern part  of  Vermont,  he  found  beside  him  a 
spruce  young  drummer,  or  what  certainly  ap- 
peared such,  who  by  some  strange  coincidence, 


A  Bit  of  Calico.  81 

wanted  a  ticket  for  the  same  place.  The  fact 
did  not  seem  in  the  least  to  surprise  him,  nor 
did  he  cast  me  a  look  beyond  the  ordinary 
glance  of  one  stranger  at  another.  Indeed 
Mr.  Blake  had  no  appearance  of  being  a  sus- 
picious man,  nor  do  I  think  at  this  time,  he  had 
the  remotest  idea  that  he  was  either  watched  or 
followed ;  an  ignorance  of  the  truth  which  I 
took  care  to  preserve  by  taking  my  seat  in  a 
different  car  from  him  and  not  showing  myself 
again  during  the  whole  ride  from  New  York  to 
Putney. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  HOUSE  AT  THE  GRANBY  CROSS   ROADS. 

* 

WHY  Mr.  Blake  should  take  a  journey  at 
all  at  this  time,  and  why  of  all  places  in 
the  world  he  should  choose  such  an  insignificant 
town  as  Putney  for  his  destination,  was  of  course 
the  mystery  upon  which  I  brooded  during  the 
entire  distance.  But  when  somewhere  near  five 
in  the  afternoon  I  stepped  from  the  cars  on  to 
the  platform  at  Putney  Station  only  to  hear  Mr. 
Blake  making  inquiries  in  regard  to  a  certain 
stage  running  between  that  town  and  a  still 
smaller  village  further  east,  I  own  I  was  not 
only  surprised  but  well-nigh  nonplussed.  Es- 
pecially as  he  seemed  greatly  disappointed  to 
hear  that  it  only  ran  once  a  day,  and  then  for 
an  earlier  train  in  the  morning. 

"  You  will  have  to  wait  till  to-morrow  I  fear," 
said  the  ticket  agent,  "  unless  the  landlord  of 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     83 

the  hotel  down  yonder,  can  harness  you  up  a 
team.  There  is  a  funeral  out  west  to-day  and— 

I  did  not  wait  to  hear  more  but  hurried  down 
to  the  hotel  he  had  pointed  out,  and  hunting  up 
the  landlord  inquired  if  for  love  or  money  he 
could  get  me  any  sort  of  a  conveyance  for  Mel- 
ville that  afternoon.  He  assured  me  it  would 
be  impossible,  the  livery  stable  as  well  as  his 
own  being  entirely  empty. 

"  Such  a  thing  don't  happen  here  once  in  five 
years,"  said  he  to  me.  "  But  the  old  codger 
who  is  dead,  though  a  queer  dick  was  a  noted 
personage  in  these  parts,  and  not  a  man,  woman 
or  child,  who  could  find  a  horse,  mule  or  don- 
key, but  what  availed  himself  of  the  privilege. 
Even  the  doctor's  spavined  mare  was  pressed 
into  service,  though  she  halts  on  one  leg  and 
stops  to  get  her  breath  half  a  dozen  times  in 
going  up  one  short  hill.  You  will  have  to  wait 
for  the  stage,  sir." 

"  But  I  am  in  a  hurry,"  said  I  as  I  saw  Mr. 
Blake  enter.  "  I  have  business  in  Melville  to- 
night, and  I  would  pay  anything  in  reason  to 
get  there." 

But  the  landlord  only  shook  his  head  ;    and 


84      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

drawing  back  with  the  air  of  an  abused  man,  I 
took  up  my  stand  in  the  doorway  where  I  could 
hear  the  same  colloquy  entered  into  with  Mr. 
Blake,  with  the  same  unsatisfactory  termination. 
He  did  not  take  it  quite  as  calmly  as  I  did, 
though  he  was  of  too  reserved  a  nature  to 
display  much  emotion  over  anything.  The 
prospect  of  a  long  tedious  evening  spent  in  a 
country  hotel  seemed  almost  unendurable  to 
him,  but  he  finally  succumbed  to  the  force  of  cir- 
cumstances, as  indeed  he  seemed  obliged  to  do, 
and  partaking  of  such  refreshment  as  the  rather 
poorly  managed  hotel  afforded,  retired  without 
ceremony  to  his  room,  from  which  he  did  not 
emerge  again  till  next  morning.  In  all  this  he 
had  somehow  managed  not  to  give  his  name ; 
and  by  means  of  some  inquiries  I  succeeded  in 
making  that  evening,  I  found  his  person  was 
unknown  in  the  town. 

By  a  little  management  I  secured  the  next 
room  to  his,  by  which  arrangement  I  succeeded 
in  passing  a  sleepless  night,  Mr.  Elake  spending 
most  of  the  wee  sma'  hours  in  pacing  the  floor 
of  his  room,  with  an  unremitting  regularity  that 
had  anything  but  a  soothing  effect  upon  my 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     85 

nerves.  Early  the  next  morning  we  took  the 
stage,  he  sitting  on  the  back  seat,  and  I  in  front 
with  the  driver.  There  were  other  passengers, 
but  I  noticed  he  never  spoke  to  any  of  them,  nor 
through  all  the  long  drive  did  he  once  look  up 
from  the  corner  where  he  had  ensconced  him- 
self. It  was  twelve  o'clock  when  we  reached 
the  end  of  the  route,  a  small  town  of  somewhat 
less  than  the  usual  pretensions  of  mountain 
villages  ;  so  insignificant  indeed,  that  I  found  it 
more  and  more  difficult  to  imagine  what  the 
wealthy  ex-Congressman  could  find  in  such  a 
spot  as  this,  to  make  amends  for  a  journey  of 
such  length  and  discomfort ;  when  to  my  in- 
creasing wonder  I  heard  him  give  orders  for  a 
horse  to  be  saddled  and  brought  round  to  the 
inn  door  directly  after  dinner.  This  was  a 
move  I  had  not  expected  and  it  threw  me  a 
little  aback,  for  although  I  had  thus  far  managed 
to  hold  myself  so  aloof  from  Mr.  Blake,  even 
while  keeping  him  under  my  eye,  that  no  sus- 
picion of  my  interest  in  his  movements  had  as 
yet  been  awakened,  how  could  I  thus  for  the 
third  time  follow  his  order  with  one  precisely 
similar,  without  attracting  an  attention  that 


86      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

would  be  fatal  to  my  plans.  Yet  to  let  him 
ride  off  alone  now,  would  be  to  drop  the 
trail  at  the  very  moment  the  scent  became  of 
importance. 

The  landlord,  a  bustling,  wiry  little  man  all 
nervousness  and  questions,  unwittingly  helped 
me  at  this  crisis. 

"  Are  you  going  on  to  Perry,  sir  ?  "  inquired 
he  of  that  gentleman,  "  I  have  been  expecting 
a  man  along  these  three  days  bound  for  Perry." 

"  I  am  that  man,"  I  broke  in,  stepping  for- 
ward with  some  appearance  of  asperity,  "and  I 
hope  you  won't  keep  me  waiting.  A  horse  as 
soon  as  dinner  is  over,  do  you  hear  ?  I  am  two 
days  late  now,  and  won't  stand  any  nonsense." 

And  to  escape  the  questions  sure  to  follow, 
I  strode  into  the  dining-room  with  a  half-fierce, 
half-sullen  countenance,  that  effectually  pre- 
cluded all  advances.  During  the  meal  I  saw 
Mr.  Blake's  eye  roam  more  than  once  towards 
my  face  ;  but  I  did  not  return  his  gaze,  or  notice 
him  in  any  way  ;  hurrying  through  my  dinner, 
and  mounting  the  first  horse  brought  around, 
as  if  time  were  my  only  consideration.  But 
once  on  the  road  I  took  the  first  opportunity 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     87 

to  draw  rein  and  wait,  suddenly  remembering 
that  I  had  not  heard  Mr.  Blake  give  any  inti- 
mation of  the  direction  he  intended  taking.  A 
few  minutes  revealed  to  me  his  elegant  form 
well  mounted  and  showing  to  perfection  in  his 
closely  buttoned  coat,  slowly  approaching  up 
the  road.  Taking  advantage  of  a  rise  in  the 
ground,  I  lingered  till  he  was  almost  upon  me, 
when  I  cantered  quickly  on,  fearing  to  arouse 
his  apprehensions  if  I  allowed  him  to  pass  me 
on  a  road  so  solitary  as  that  which  now  stretched 
out  before  us  :  a  move  provocative  of  much 
embarassment  to  me,  as  I  dared  not  turn  my 
head  for  the  same  reason,  anxious  as  I  was  to 
keep  him  in  sight. 

The  roads  dividing  before  me,  at  length  gave 
me  my  first  opportunity  to  pause  and  look  back. 
He  was  some  fifty  paces  behind.  Waiting  till 
he  came  up,  I  bowed  with  the  surly  courtesy 
I  thought  in  keeping  with  the  character  I  had 
assumed,  and  asked  if  he  knew  which  road  led 
towards  Perry,  saying  I  had  come  off  in  such 
haste  I  had  forgotten  to  inquire  my  way.  He 
returned  my  bow,  pointed  towards  the  left  hand 
road  and  saying,  "  I  know  this  does  not"  calmly 
took  it. 


88      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

Now  here  was  a  dilemma.  If  in  face  of  this 
curt  response  I  proceeded  to  follow  him,  my 
hand  was  revealed  at  once  ;  yet  the  circumstan- 
ces would  admit  of  no  other  course.  I  deter- 
mined to  compromise  matters  by  pretending  to 
take  the  right  hand  road  till  he  was  out  of  sight, 
when  I  would  return  and  follow  him  swiftly 
upon  the  left.  Accordingly  I  reined  my  horse 
to  the  right,  and  for  some  fifteen  minutes  gal- 
loped slowly  away  towards  the  north  ;  but  an- 
other fifteen  saw  me  facing  the  west,  and  riding 
with  a  force  and  fury  of  which  I  had  not  thought 
the  old  mare  they  had  given  me  capable,  till  I 
put  her  to  the  test.  It  was  not  long  before 
I  saw  my  fine  gentleman  trotting  in  front  of 
me  up  a  long  but  gentle  slope  that  rose  in  the 
distance  ;  and  slackening  my  own  rein,  I  with- 
drew into  the  forest  at  the  side  of  the  road,  till 
he  had  passed  its  summit  and  disappeared,  when 
I  again  galloped  forward. 

And  thus  we  went  on  for  an  hour,  over  the 
most  uneven  country  I  ever  traversed,  he  always 
one  hill  ahead ;  when  suddenly,  by  what  instinct 
I  cannot  determine,  I  felt  myself  approaching 
the  end,  and  hastening  to  the  top  of  the  ascent 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     89 

up  which  I  was  then  laboring,  looked  down  in- 
to the  shallow  valley  spread  out  before  me. 

What  a  sight  met  my  eyes  if  I  had  been  in- 
tent on  anything  less  practical  than  the  move- 
ments of  the  solitary  horseman  below !  Hills  on 
hills  piled  about  a  verdant  basin  in  whose 
depths  nestled  a  scanty  collection  of  houses,  in 
number  so  small  they  could  be  told  upon  the 
fingers  of  the  right  hand,  but  which  notwith- 
standing lent  an  indescribable  aspect  of  comfort 
to  this  remote  region  of  hill  and  forest. 

But  the  vision  of  Mr.  Blake  pausing  half  way 
down  the  slope  before  me,  examining,  yes  ex- 
amining a  pistol  which  he  held  in  his  hand, 
soon  put  an  end  to  all  ideas  of  romance.  Some- 
what alarmed  I  reined  back  ;  but  his  action  had 
evidently  no  connection  with  me,  for  he  did  not 
once  glance  behind  him,  but  kept  his  eye  on 
the  road  which  I  now  observed  took  a  short 
turn  towards  a  house  of  so  weird  and  ominous 
an  appearance  that  I  scarcely  marvelled  at  his 
precaution. 

Situated  on  a  level  track  of  land  at  the  cross- 
ing of  three  roads,  its  spacious  front,  rude  and 
unpainted  as  it  was,  presented  every  appearance 


go      The  House  at  tlie  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

of  an  inn,  but  from  its  moss-grown  chimneys 
no  smoke  arose,  nor  could  I  detect  any  sign  of 
life  in  its  shutterless  windows  and  closed  doors, 
across  which  shivered  the  dark  shadow  of  the 
one  gaunt  and  aged  pine,  that  stood  like  a 
guard  beside  its  tumbled-down  porch. 

Mr.  Blake  seemed  to  have  been  struck  by 
the  same  fact  concerning  its  loneliness,  for  hur- 
riedly replacing  his  pistol  in  his  breast  pocket, 
he  rode  slowly  forward.  I  instantly  conceived 
the  plan  of  striking  across  the  belt  of  under- 
brush that  separated  me  from  this  old  dwelling, 
and  by  taking  my  stand  opposite  its  front,  inter- 
cept a  view  of  Mr.  Blake  as  he  approached. 
Hastily  dismounting,  therefore,  I  led  my  horse 
into  the  bushes  and  tied  her  to  a  tree,  proceed- 
ing to  carry  out  my  plan  on  foot.  I  was  so  far 
successful  as  to  arrive  at  the  further  edge  of  the 
wood,  which  was  thick  enough  to  conceal  my 
presence  without  being  too  dense  to  obstruct  my 
vision,  just  as  Mr.  Blake  passed  on  his  way  to 
this  solitary  dwelling.  He  was  looking  very  anx- 
ious, but  determined.  Turning  my  eyes  from 
him,  I  took  another  glance  at  the  house,  which 
by  this  movement  I  had  brought  directly  before 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads,     g  i 

me.  It  was  even  more  deserted-looking  than 
I  had  thought ;  its  unpainted  front  with  its 
double  row  of  blank  windows  meeting  your  gaze 
without  a  response,  while  the  huge  old  pine 
with  half  its  limbs  dismantled  of  foliage,  rattled 
its  old  bones  against  its  sides  and  moaned  in 
its  aged  fashion  like  the  solitary  retainer  of  a 
dead  race. 

I  own  I  felt  the  cold  shivers  creep  down  my 
back  as  that  creaking  sound  struck  my  ears, 
though  as  the  day  was  chill  with  an  east  wind 
I  dare  say  it  was  more  the  effect  of  my  sudden 
cessation  from  exercise,  than  of  any  superstitious 
awe  I  felt.  Mr.  Blake  seemed  to  labor  under 
no  such  impressions.  Riding  up  to  the  front 
door  he  knocked  without  dismounting,  on  its  dis- 
mal panels  with  his  riding  whip.  No  response 
was  heard.  Knitting  his  brows  impatiently,  he 
tried  the  latch  :  the  door  was  locked.  Hast- 
ily running  his  eye  over  the  face  of  the  building, 
he  drew  rein  and  proceeded  to  ride  around  the 
house,  which  he  could  easily  do  owing  to  the 
absence  of  every  obstruction  in  the  way  of  fence 
or  shrubbery.  Finding  no  means  of  entrance 
he  returned  again  to  the  front  door  which  he 


92      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

shook  with  an  impatient  hand  that  however  pro- 
duced no  impression  upon  the  trusty  lock,  and 
recognizing,  doubtless,  the  futility  of  his  endeav- 
ors, he  drew  back,  and  merely  pausing  to  give 
one  other  look  at  its  deserted  front,  turned  his 
horse's  head,  and  to  my  great  amazement,  pro- 
ceeded with  sombre  mien  and  clouded  brow  to 
retake  the  road  to  Melville. 

This  old  inn  or  decayed  homestead  was  then 
the  object  of  his  lengthened  and  tedious  jour- 
ney ;  this  ancient  house  rotting  away  among 
the  bleak  hills  of  Vermont,  the  bourne  towards 
which  his  steps  had  been  tending  for  these  past 
two  days.  I  could  not  understand  it.  Rapidly 
emerging  from  the  spot  where  I  had  secreted 
myself,  I  in  my  turn  made  a  circuit  of  the  house, 
if  happily  I  should  discover  some  loophole  of 
entrance  which  had  escaped  his  attention.  But 
every  door  and  window  was  securely  barred, 
and  I  was  about  to  follow  his  example  and  leave 
the  spot,  when  I  saw  two  or  three  children  ad- 
vancing towards  me  down  the  cross  roads,  gaily 
swinging  their  school  books.  I  noticed  they 
hesitated  and  huddled  together  as  they  ap- 
proached and  saw  me,  but  not  heeding  this,  J 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     93 

accosted  them  with  a  pleasant  word  or  so,  then 
pointing  over  my  shoulder  to  the  house  behind, 
asked  who  lived  there.  Instantly  their  already 
pale  faces  grew  paler. 

"  Why,"  cried  one,  a  boy,  "don't  you  know? 
That  is  where  the  two  wicked  men  lived  who 
stole  the  money  out  of  the  Rutland  bank.  They 
were  put  in  prison,  but  they  got  away  and— 

Here,  the  other,  a  little  girl,  plucked  him  by 
the  sleeve  with  such  affright,  that  he  himself 
took  alarm  and  just  giving  me  one  quick  stare 
out  of  his  wide  eyes,  grasped  his  companion  by 
the  hand  and  took  to  his  heels.  As  for  myself 
I  stood  rooted  to  the  ground  in  my  astonish- 
ment. This  blank,  sleepy  old  house  the  home 
of  the  notorious  Schoenmakers  after  whom  half 
of  the  detectives  of  the  country  were  searching? 
I  could  scarcely  credit  my  own  ears.  True  I 
now  remembered  they  had  come  from  these 
parts,  still — 

Turning  round  I  eyed  the  house  once  more. 
How  altered  it  looked  to  me  !  What  a  murder- 
ous aspect  it  wore,  and  how  dismally  secret 
were  the  tight  shut  windows  and  closely  fast- 
ened doors,  on  one  of  which  a  rude  cross 


94      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

scrawled  in  red  chalk  met  the  eye  with  a  mys- 
terious significance.  Even  the  old  pine  had  ac- 
quired the  villainous  air  of  the  uncanny  repositot 
of  secrets  too  dreadful  to  reveal,  as  it  groaned 
and  murmured  to  itself  in  the  keen  east  wind. 
Dark  deeds  and  foul  wrong  seemed  written  all 
over  the  fearful  place,  from  the  long  strings  ol 
black  moss  that  clung  to  the  worm-eaten  eaves, 
to  the  worn  stone  with  its  great  blotch  of  some- 
thing,— could  it  have  been  blood  ? — that  served 
as  a  threshold  to  the  door.  Suddenly  with 
the  quickness  of  lightning  the  thought  flashed 
across  me,  what  could  Mr.  Blake,  the  aristocratic 
representative  of  New  York's  oldest  family, 
have  wanted  in  this  nest  of  infamy  ?  What 
errand  of  hope,  fear,  despair,  avarice  or  revenge, 
could  have  brought  this  superior  gentleman 
with  his  refined  tastes  and  proudly  reticent 
manners,  so  many  miles  from  home,  to  the  for- 
saken den  of  a  brace  of  hardy  villains  whose 
name  for  two  years  now,  had  stood  as  the 
type  of  all  that  was  bold,  bad  and  lawless,  and 
for  whom  during  the  last  six  weeks  the  prison 
had  yawned,  and  the  gallows  hungered.  Con- 
templation brought  no  reply,  and  shocked  at 


The  Hotise  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     9  5 

my  own  thoughts,  I  put  the  question  by  for 
steadier  brains  than  mine  ;  and  instead  of  trying 
further  to  solve  it,  cast  about  how  I  was  to  gain 
entrance  into  this  deserted  building ;  for  to 
enter  it  I  was  more  than  ever  determined,  now 
that  I  had  heard  to  whom  it  had  once  belonged. 

Examining  with  a  glance  the  several  roads 
that  branched  off  in  every  direction  from  where 
I  stood,  I  found  them  all  equally  deserted. 
Even  the  school  children  had  disappeared  in 
some  one  of  the  four  or  five  houses  scattered 
in  the  remote  distance. 

If  I  was  willing  to  enter  upon  any  daring  ex- 
ploit, there  was  no  one  to  observe  or  interrupt. 
I  resolved  to  make  the  attempt  with  which  my 
mind  was  full.  This  was  to  climb  the  old  tree, 
and  from  one  of  the  two  or  three  branches  that 
brushed  against  the  house,  gain  entrance  at  an 
open  garret  window  that  stared  at  me  from 
amid  the  pine's  dark  needles.  Taking  off  my 
coat  with  a  sigh  over  the  immaculate  condition 
of  my  new  cassimere  trousers,  I  bent  my  ener- 
gies to  the  task.  A  difficult  one  you  will  say 
for  a  city  lad,  but  thanks  to  fortune  I  was  not 
brought  up  in  New  York,  and  know  how  to 


96      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

climb  trees  with  the  best.  With  little  more 
than  a  scratch  or  so,  I  reached  the  window  oi 
which  I  have  spoken,  and  after  a  moment  spent 
in  regaining  my  breath,  gave  one  spring  and 
accomplished  my  purpose.  I  alighted  upon  a 
heap  of  broken  glass  in  a  large  bare  room. 
An  ominous  chill  at  once  struck  to  my  heart. 
Though  I  am  anything  but  a  sensitive  man  as 
far  as  physical  impressions  are  concerned,  there 
was  something  in  the  hollow  echo  that  arose 
from  the  four  blank  walls  about  me  as  my  feet 
alighted  on  that  rough,  uncarpeted  floor,  that 
struck  a  vague  chill  through  my  blood,  and  I 
actually  hesitated  for  the  moment  whether  to 
pursue  the  investigations  I  had  promised  my- 
self, or  beat  a  hasty  retreat.  A  glance  at  the 
huge  distorted  limbs  swaying  across  the  square 
of  the  open  window  decided  me.  It  was  easy 
to  enter  by  means  of  that  unsteady  support,  but 
it  would  be  extremely  unsafe  to  venture  forth 
in  that  way.  If  I  prized  life  and  limb  I  must 
seek  some  other  method  of  egress.  I  at  once 
put  my  apprehensions  in  my  pocket  and  entered 
upon  my  self  imposed  task. 

A  single  glance  was  sufficient  to  exhaust  the 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     97 

resources  of  the  empty  garret  in  which  I  found 
myself.     Two  or  three  old  chairs  piled  in  one 
corner,  a  rusty  stove  or  so,  a  heap  of  tattered  and 
decaying  clothing,  were  all  that  met  my  gaze. 
Taking  my  way,  then,  at  once  to  the  ladder, 
whose  narrow  ends  projecting  above  a  hole   in 
the  garret  floor,  seemed  to  proffer  the  means 
of  reaching  the  rooms  below,  I    proceeded   to 
descend  into  what  to  my  excited  imagination 
looked    like  a  gulf  of  darkness.      It  proved, 
however,  to   be    nothing  more    nor  less   than 
an  unlighted  hall  of  small  dimensions,  with  a 
stair-case  at  one  end  and  a  door  at  the  other, 
which,  upon  opening  I  found  myself  in  a  large, 
square  room  whose  immense  four-post  bedstead 
entirely  denuded  of  its  usual  accompaniments  of 
bed  and  bolster  at  once  struck  my  eye  and  for 
a  moment  held  it  enchained.    There  were  other 
articles  in  the  room  ;  a  disused  bureau,  a  rock- 
ing chair,  even  a  table,  but  nothing  had  such  a 
ghostly  look  as  that  antique  bedstead  with  its 
curtains  of  calico  tied  back  over  its  naked  frame- 
work, like  rags  draped  from  the  bare  bones  of  a 
skeleton.    Passing  hurriedly  by,  I  tried  a  closet 
door  or  so,  finding  little,  however,  to  reward  my 


98      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

search  ;  and  eager  to  be  done  with  what  was 
every  moment  becoming  more  and  more  drear- 
isome,  I  hastened  across  the  floor  to  the  front 
of  the  house  where  I  found  another  hall  and  a 
row  of  rooms  that,  while  not  entirely  stripped  of 
furniture,  were  yet  sufficiently  barren  to  offer 
little  encourgement  to  my  curiosity.  One  only, 
a  small  but  not  uncomfortable  apartment,  show- 
ed any  signs  of  having  been  occupied  within 
a  reasonable  length  of  time  ;  and  as  I  paused 
before  its  hastily  spread  bed,  thrown  together 
as  only  a  man  would  do  it,  and  wondering  why 
the  room  was  so  dark,  looked  up  and  saw  that 
the  window  was  entirely  covered  by  an  old 
shawl  and  a  couple  of  heavy  coats  that  had 
been  hastily  nailed  across  it,  I  own  I  felt  my 
hand  go  to  my  breast  pocket  almost  as  if  I 
expected  to  see  the  wild  faces  of  the  dreaded 
Schoenmakers  start  up  all  aglare  from  one  of 
the  dim  corners  before  me.  Rushing  to  the 
window,  I  tore  down  with  one  sweep  of  my 
arm  both  coat  and  shawl,  and  with  a  start 
discovered  that  the  window  still  possessed  its 
draperies  in  the  shape  of  a  pair  of  discolored 
and  tattered  curtains  tied  with  ribbons  that 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     99 

must  once  have  been  brilliant  and  cheery  of 
color. 

Nor  was  this  the  only  sign  in  the  room  of  a 
bygone  presence  that  had  possessed  a  taste  for 
something  beyond  the  mere  necessities  of  life. 
On  the  grim  coarsely  papered  wall  hung  more 
than  one  picture ;  cut  from  pictorial  newspapers 
to  be  sure,  but  each  and  every  one,  if  I  may  be 
called  a  judge  of  such  matters,  possessing  some 
quality  of  expression  to  commend  it  to  a  certain 
order  of  taste.  They  were  all  strong  pictures. 
Vivid  faces  of  men  and  women  in  daring  posi- 
tions ;  a  hunter  holding  back  a  jaguar  from  his 
throat ;  a  soldier  protecting  his  comrade  from 
the  stroke;  and  most  striking  of  all,  a  woman 
lissome  as  she  was  powerful,  starting  aghast 
and  horror  stricken  from — what  ?  I  could  not 
tell ;  a  rough  hand  had  stripped  the  remainder 
of  the  picture  from  the  wall. 

A  bit  of  candle  and  a  half  sheet  of  a  news- 
paper lay  on  the  floor.  I  picked  up  the  paper. 
It  was  a  Rutland  Herald  and  bore  the  date  of 
two  days  before.  As  I  read  I  realized  what  I 
had  done.  If  these  daring  robbers  were  not  at 
this  very  moment  in  the  house,  they  had  been 


ioo      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

there,  and  that  within  two  or  three  days.  The 
broken  panes  of  glass  in  the  garret  above  were 
now  explained.  I  was  not  the  first  one  who 
had  climbed  that  creaking  pine  tree  this  fall. 

Something  like  a  sensible  dread  of  a  very  pos- 
sible  danger  now  seized  hold  of  me.     If  I  had 
stumbled  upon  these  strangly  subtile,  yet  devil- 
ishly bold  creatures  in  their  secret  lair,  the  pistol 
I  carried  was  not  going  to  save  me.     Shut  in 
like  a  fox  in  a  hole,  I  had  little  to  hope  for,  if 
they  once  made  their  appearance  at  the  stair- 
head or  came  upon   me  from  any  of  the  dim 
halls  of  the  crazy  old  dwelling,  which    I  now 
began  to  find  altogether  too  large  for  my  com- 
fort.    Stealing  cautiously  forth  from  the  room  in 
which  I  had  found  so  much  to  disconcert  me, 
I  crept  towards  the  front  staircase  and  listened. 
All  was   deathly   quiet.     The    old    pine    tree 
moaned  and  twisted  without,  and  from  time  to 
time  the  wind  came  sweeping  down  the  chim- 
ney with  an  unearthly  shrieking  sound  that  was 
weirdly  in  keeping  with  the  place.     But  within 
and  below  all  was  still  as  the  tomb,  and  though 
in  no  ways  reassured,  I  determined  to  descend 
and  have  the  suspense  over  at  once.     I  did  so, 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     101 

pistol  in  hand  and  ears  stretched  to  their  ut- 
most to  catch  the  slightest  rustle,  but  no  sound 
came  to  disturb  me,  nor  did  I  meet  on  this 
lower  floor  the  sign  of  any  other  presence  in 
the  house  but  my  own.  Passing  hastily  through 
what  appeared  to  be  a  sort  of  rude  parlor,  I 
stepped  into  the  kitchen  and  tried  one  of  the 
windows.  Finding  I  could  easily  lift  it  from 
the  inside,  I  drew  my  breath  with  ease  for  the 
first  time  since  I  had  alighted  among  the  broken 
glass  above,  and  turning  back,  deliberately 
opened  the  door  of  the  kitchen  stove,  and  looked 
in.  As  I  half  expected,  I  found  a  pile  of  part- 
ly charred  rags,  showing  where  the  wretches 
had  burned  their  prison  clothing,  and  proceed- 
ing further,  picked  up  from  the  ashes  a  ring 
which  whether  or  not  they  were  conscious  of 
having  attempted  to  destroy  in  this  way  I  can- 
not say,  but  which  I  thankfully  put  in  my  pocket 
against  the  day  it  might  be  required  as  proof. 

Discerning  nothing  more  in  that  quarter  in- 
viting interest,  I  asked  myself  if  I  had  nerve 
to  descend  into  the  cellar.  Finally  concluding 
that  that  was  more  than  could  be  expected  from 
any  man  in  my  position,  I  gave  one  look  of 


IO2      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads* 

farewell  to  the  damp  and  desolate  walls  about 
me,  then  with  a  breath  of  relief  jumped  from  the 
kitchen  window  again  into  the  light  and  air  of 
day.  As  I  did  so  I  could  swear  I  heard  a  door 
within  that  old  house  swing  on  its  hinges  and 
softly  close.  With  a  thrill  I  recognized  the  fact 
that  it  came  from  the  cellar. 

*:;:*** 

My  thoughts  on  the  road  back  to  Melville 
were  many  and  conflicting.  Chief  above  them 
all,  however,  rose  the  comfortable  conclusion 
that  in  the  pursuit  of  one  mysterious  affair,  I 
had  stumbled,  as  is  often  the  case,  upon  the  clue 
to  another  of  yet  greater  importance,  and  by  so 
doing  got  a  start  that  might  yet  redound  greatly 
to  my  advantage.  For  the  reward  offered  for 
the  recapture  of  the  Schoenmakers  was  large, 
and  the  possibility  of  my  being  the  one  to  put 
the  authorities  upon  their  track,  certainly  ap- 
peared after  this  day's  developements,  open  at 
least  to  a  very  reasonable  hope.  At  all  events 
I  determined  not  to  let  the  grass  grow  under 
my  feet  till  I  had  informed  the  Superintendent 
of  what  I  had  seen  and  heard  that  day  in  the 
old  haunt  of  these  two  escaped  convicts. 


The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     103 

Arrived  at  the  public  house  in  Melville,  and 
learning  that  Mr.  Blake  had  safely  returned 
there  an  hour  before,  I  drew  the  landlord  to  one 
side  and  asked  what  he  could  tell  me  about  that 
old  house  of  the  two  noted  robbers  Schoenma- 
ker,  I  had  passed  on  my  way  back  among  the 
hills. 

"  Wa'al  now,"  replied  he,  "  this  is  curious., 
Here  I've  just  been  answering  the  gentleman 
up  stairs  a  heap  of  questions  concerning  that 
self  same  old  place,  and  now  you  come  along 
with  another  batch  of  them  ;  just  as  if  that  rick- 
ety old  den  was  the  only  spot  of  interest  we  had 
in  these  parts." 

"  Perhaps  that  may  be  the  truth,"  I  laughed. 
"Just  now  when  the  papers  are  full  of  these 
rogues,  anything  concerning  them  must  be  of 
superior  interest  of  course."  And  I  pressed 
him  again  to  give  me  a  history  of  the  house 
and  the  two  thieves  who  had  inhabited  it. 

"Wa'al,"  drawled  he  "  'taint  much  we  know 
about  them,  yet  after  all  it  may  be  a  trifle  too 
much  for  their  necks  some  day.  Time  was 
when  nobody  thought  especial  ill  of  them  be- 
yond a  suspicion  or  so  of  their  being  somewhat 


;O4      The  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads. 

mean  about  money.  That  was  when  they  kept 
an  inn  there,  but  when  the  robbery  of  the  Rut- 
land bank  was  so  clearly  traced  to  them,  more 
than  one  man  about  here  started  up  and  said  as 
how  they  had  always  suspected  them  Shoenma- 
kers  of  being  villains,  and  even  hinted  at  some- 
thing worse  than  robbery.  But  nothing  beyond 
that  one  rascality  has  yet  been  proved  against 
them,  and  for  that  they  were  sent  to  jail  for 
twenty  years  as  you  know.  Two  months  ago 
they  escaped,  and  that  is  the  last  known  of 
them.  A  precious  set,  too,  they  are  ;  the  father 
being  only  so  much  the  greater  rogue  than  the 
son  as  he  is  years  older." 

"And  the  inn  ?     When  was  that  closed  ?  " 

"  Just  after  their  arrest." 

"  Has'nt  it  been  opened  since  ?  " 

"  Only  once  when  a  brace  of  detectives  came 
up  from  Troy  to  investigate,  as  they  called  it." 

"  Who  has  the  key  ?  " 

"  Ah,  that's  more  than  I  can  tell  you." 

I  dared  not  ask  how  my  questions  differed 
from  those  of  Mr.  Blake,  nor  indeed  touch  upon 
that  point  in  any  way.  I  was  chiefly  anxious 
now  to  return  to  New  York  without  delay ;  so 


TTie  House  at  the  Granby  Cross  Roads.     io5 

paying  my  bill  I  thanked  the  landlord,  and  with- 
out waiting  for  the  stage,  remounted  my  horse 
and  proceeded  at  once  to  Putney  where  I  was 
fortunate  enough  to  catch  the  evening  train. 
By  five  o'clock  next  morning  I  was  in  New  York 
where  I  proceeded  to  carry  out  my  programme 
by  hastening  at  once  to  headquarters  and  report- 
ing my  suspicions  regarding  the  whereabouts  of 
the  Schoenmakers.  The  information  was  re- 
ceived with  interest  and  I  had  the  satisfaction 
of  seeing  two  men  despatched  north  that  very 
day  with  orders  to  procure  the  arrest  of  the 
two  notable  villains  wherever  found. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

A  WORD  OVERHEARD. 

THAT  evening  I  had  a  talk  with  Fanny 
over  the  area  gate.     She  came  out  when 
she  saw  me  approach,  with  her  eyes  staring 
and  her  whole  form  in  a  flutter. 

"  O,"  she  cried,  "such  things  as  I  have  heard 
this  day ! " 
'  "  Well,"  said  I,  "  what  ?  let  me  hear  too." 

She  put  her  hand  on  her  heart.  "  I  never 
was  so  frightened,"  whispered  she,  "  I  thought 
I  should  have  fainted  right  away.  To  hear 
that  elegant  lady  use  such  a  word  as  crime, — " 

"  What  elegant  lady  ?  "  interrupted  I.  "  Don't 
begin  in  the  middle  of  your  story,  that's  a  good 
girl  ;  I  want  to  hear  it  all." 

"  Well,"  said  she,  calming  down  a  little,  "  Mrs. 
Daniels  had  a  visitor  to-day,  a  lady.  She  was 
dressed — " 


A    Word  Overheard.  107 

•*  O,  viow,"  interrupted  I  for  the  second  time, 
-  you  can  leave  that  out.  Tell  me  what  her 
name  was  and  let  the  fol-de-rols  go." 

"  Her  name  ?  "  exclaimed  the  girl  with  some 
sharpness,  "  how  should  I  know  her  name ; 
she  did'nt  come  to  see  me." 

"  How  did  she  look  Aen?  You  saw  her  I 
suppose  ?  " 

"  And  was'nt  that  wha<  I  was  telling  you, 
when  you  stopped  me.  She  looked  like  a 
queen,  that  she  did  ;  as  grand  a  lady  as  ever  I 
see,  in  her  velvet  dress  sweeping  over  the  floor, 
and  her  diamonds  as  big  as — " 

"  Was  she  a  dark  woman  ?  "  I  asked. 

"Her  hair  was  black  and  so  were  her  eyes, 
if  that  is  what  you  mean." 

"  And  was  she  very  tall  and  proud  Ux)king?" 

The  girl  nodded.  "  You  know  her  ?  '  whis- 
pered she. 

"  No,"  said  I,  "  not  exactly ;  but  I  think  I 
can  tell  who  she  is.  And  so  she  called  to-day 
on  Mrs.  Daniels,  did  she." 

"  Yes,  but  I  guess  she  knew  master  woijld 
be  home  before  she  got  away." 

"Come,"  said  I,  "tell  me  all  about  it;  I'm 
getting  impatient." 


io8  A    Word  Overheard. 

"  And  ain't  I  telling  you  r  "  said  she.  "  It 
was  about  three  o'clock  this  afternoon,  the  time 
I  go  up  stairs  to  dress,  so  I  just  hangs  about 
in  the  hall  a  bit,  near  the  parlor  door,  and  I 
hear  her  gossiping  with  Mrs.  Daniels  almost  as 
if  she  was  an  old  friend,  and  Mrs.  Daniels 
answering  her  mighty  stiffly  and  as  if  she  was'nt 
glad  to  see  her  at  all.  But  the  lady  didn't  seem 
to  mind,  but  went  on  talking  as  sweet  as  honey, 
and  when  they  came  out,  you  would  have 
thought  she  loved  the  old  woman  like  a  sister 
to  see  her  look  into  her  face  and  say  something 
about  knowing  how  busy  she  was,  but  that  it 
would  give  her  so  much  pleasure  if  she  would 
come  some  day  to  see  her  and  talk  over  old 
times.  But  Mrs.  Daniels  was'nt  pleased  a  bit 
and  showed  plain  enough  she  did'nt  like  the 
lady,  fine  as  she  was  in  her  ways.  She  was 
going  to  answer  her  too,  but  just  then  the  front 
door  opened  and  Mr.  Blake  with  his  satchel  in 
his  hand,  came  into  the  house.  And  how  he 
did  start,  to  be  sure,  when  he  saw  them,  though 
he  tried  to  say  something  perlite  which  she 
did'nt  seem  to  take  to  at  all,  for  after  muttering 
something  about  not  expecting  to  see  him,  she 


A    Word  Overheard.  109 

put  her  hand  on  the  knob  and  was  going  right 
out.  But  he  stopped  her  and  they  went  into 
the  parlor  together  while  Mrs.  Daniels  stood 
staring  after  them  like  one  mad,  her  hand  held 
out  with  his  bag  and  umbrella  in  it,  stiff  as  a 
statter  in  the  Central  Park.  She  did'nt  stand  so 
long,  though,  but  came  running  down  the  hall, 
as  if  she  was  bewitched.  I  was  dreadful  flust- 
ered, for  though  I  was  hid  behind  the  wall  that 
juts  out  there  by  the  back  stairs,  I  was  afraid 
she  would  see  me  and  shame  me  before  Mr. 
Blake.  But  she  passed  right  by  and  never 
looked  up.  '  There  is  something  dreadful  mys- 
terious in  this,'  thought  I,  and  I  just  made  up 
my  mind  to  stay  where  I  was  till  Mr.  Blake  and 
the  lady  should  come  out  again  from  the  parlor. 
I  did'nt  have  to  wait  very  long.  In  a  few  min- 
utes the  door  opened  and  they  stepped  out,  he 
ahead  and  she  coming  after.  I  thought  this 
was  queer,  he  is  always  so  dreadful  perlite  in  his 
ways,  but  I  thought  it  was  a  deal  queerer  wheu 
I  saw  him  go  up  the  front  stairs,  she  hurrying 
after,  looking  I  cannot  tell  you  how,  but  awful 
troubled  and  anxious,  I  should  say. 

"They  went  into  that  room  of  his  he  calls 


i/o  A    Word  Overheard. 

his  studio  and  though  I  knew  it  might  cost  me 
my  place  if  I  was  found  out,  I  could'nt  help 
following  and  listening  at  the  keyhole." 

"  And  what  did  you  hear  ?  "  I  asked,  for  she 
paused  to  take  breath. 

"  Well,  the  first  thing  I  heard  was  a  cry  of 
pleasure  from  her,  and  the  words,  '  You  keep 
that  always  before  you  ?  You  cannot  dislike 
me,  then,  as  much  as  you  pertend.'  I  don't 
know  what  she  meant  nor  what  he  did,  but  he 
stepped  across  the  room  and  I  heard  her  cry 
out  this  time  as  if  she  was  hurt  as  well  as  awful 
surprised ;  and  he  talked  and  talked,  and  I 
could'nt  catch  a  word,  he  spoke  so  low  ;  and  by 
and  by  she  sobbed  just  a  little,  and  I  got  scared 
and  would  have  run  away  but  she  cried  out  with 
a  kind  of  shriek,  '  O,  don't  say  any  more  ;  to 
think  that  crime  should  come  into  our  family, 
the  proudest  in  the  land.  How  could  you, 
Holman,  how  could  you.'  Yes,"  the  girl  went 
on,  flushing  in  her  excitement  till  she  was  as  red 
as  the  cherry  ribbons  in  her  cap,  "  those  were 
the  very  words  she  used  :  '  To  think  that 
crime  should  come  into  our  family!  the  proud- 
est one  in  the  land ! '  And  she  called  him  by 


A    Word  Overheard.  1 1 1 

his  first  name,  and  asked  him  how,  he  could  do 
it." 

"  And  what  did  Mr.  Blake  say  "  returned  I,  a 
little  taken  back  myself  at  this  result  of  my 
efforts  with  Fanny. 

"  O,  I  did'nt  wait  to  hear.  I  did'nt  wait  for 
anything.  If  folks  was  going  to  talk  about  such 
things  as  that,  I  thought  I  had  better  be  any- 
where than  listening  at  the  keyhole.  I  went 
right  up  stairs  I  can  tell  you." 

"  And  whom  have  you  told  of  what  you  heard 
in  the  half  dozen  hours  that  have  gone  by  ?  " 

"  Nobody ;  how  could  you  think  so  mean  of 
me  when  I  promised,  and — " 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  any  further  into  this 
portion  of  the  interview. 

The  Countess  De  Mirac  possessed  to  its  full- 
est extent  the  present  fine  lady's  taste  for  bric- 
a-brac.  So  much  I  had  learned  in  my  inquiries 
concerning  her.  Remembering  this,  I  took  the 
bold  resolution  of  profiting  by  this  weakness  of 
hers  to  gain  admission  to  her  presence,  she 
being  the  only  one  sharing  Mr.  Blake's  myster- 
ious secret.  Borrowing  a  valuable  antique  from 
a  friend  of  mine  at  that  time  in  the  business,  I 


ii2  A    Word  OverJteard. 

made  my  appearance  the  very  next  day  at  her 
apartments,  and  sending  in  an  urgent  request 
to  see  Madame,  by  the  trim  negress  who  an- 
swered my  summons,  waited  in  some  doubt  for 
her  reply. 

It  came  all  too  soon  ;  Madame  was  ill  and 
could  see  no  one.  I  was  not,  however,  to  be  baf- 
fled by  one  rebuff.  Handing  the  basket  I  held 
to  the  girl,  I  urged  her  to  take  it  in  and  show 
her  mistress  what  it  contained,  saying  it  was  a 
rare  article  which  might  never  again  come 
her  way. 

The  girl  complied,  though  with  a  doubtful 
shake  of  the  head  which  was  anything  but  en- 
couraging. Her  incredulity,  however,  must 
have  been  speedily  rebuked,  for  she  almost  im- 
mediately returned  without  the  basket,  saying 
Madame  would  see  me. 

My  first  thoughts  upon  entering  the  grand 
lady's  presence,  was  that  the  girl  had  been  mis- 
taken, for  I  found  the  Countess  walking  the 
floor  in  an  abstracted  way,  drying  a  letter  she 
had  evidently  but  just  completed,  by  shaking  it 
to  and  fro  with  an  unsteady  hand  ;  the  placque 
I  had  brought,  lying  neglected  on  the  table. 


A    Word  Overheard.  113 

But  at  sight  of  my  respectful  form  standing 
with  bent  head  in  the  doorway,  she  hurriedly 
thrust  the  letter  into  a  book  and  took  up  the 
placque.  As  she  did  so  I  marked  her  well  and 
almost  started  at  the  change  I  observed  in  her 
since  that  evening  at  the  Academy.  It  was  not 
only  that  she  was  dressed  in  some  sort  of  loose 
dishabille  that  was  in  eminent  contrast  to  the 
sweeping  silks  and  satins  in  which  I  had  hitherto 
beheld  her  adorned  ;  or  that  she  was  laboring 
under  some  physical  disability  that  robbed  her 
dark  cheek  of  the  bloom  that  was  its  chiefest 
charm.  The  change  I  observed  went  deeper 
than  that ;  it  was  more  as  if  a  light  had  been 
extinguished  in  her  countenance.  It  was  the 
same  woman  I  had  beheld  standing  like  a  glow- 
ing column  of  will  and  strength  before  the 
melancholy  form  of  Mr.  Blake,  but  with  the  will 
and  strength  gone,  and  with  them  all  the  glow. 

"  She  no  longer  hopes,"  thought  I,  and  al- 
ready felt  repaid  for  my  trouble. 

"  This  is  a  very  pretty  article  you  have 
brought  me,"  said  she  with  something  of  the 
unrestrained  love  of  art  which  she  undoubtedly 
possessed,  showing  itself  through  all  her  Ian- 


H4  ^    Word  Overheard. 

guor.  "  Where  did  it  come  from,  and  what 
recommendations  have  you,  to  prove  it  is  an 
honest  sale  you  offer  me  ?  " 

"  None,"  returned  I,  ignoring  with  a  reass- 
uring smile  the  first  question,  "  except  that  I 
should  not  be  afraid  if  all  the  police  in  New 
York  knew  I  was  here  with  this  fine  placque 
for  sale." 

She  gave  a  shrug  of  her  proud  shoulder  that 
bespoke  the  French  Countess  and  softly  ran 
her  finger  round  the  edge  of  the  placque. 

"  I  don't  need  anything  more  of  this  kind," 
said  she  languidly ;  "  besides,"  and  she  set  it 
down  with  a  fretful  air,  "  I  am  in  no  mood  to 
buy  this  afternoon."  Then  shortly,  "  What  do 
you  ask  for  it  ?  " 

I  named  a  fabulous  price. 

She  started  and  cast  me  a  keen  glance.  "  You 
had  better  take  it  to  some  one  else  ;  I  have  no 
money  to  throw  away." 

With  a  hesitating  hand  I  lifted  the  placque 
towards  the  basket.  "  I  would  very  much  like 
to  sell  it  to  you,"  said  I.  "  Perhaps- 
Just  then  a  lady's  fluttering  voice  rose  from 
the  room  beyond  inquiring  for  the  Countess, 


A   Word  Overheard.  1 1 5 

and  hurriedly  taking  the  placque  from  my  hand 
with  an  impulsive  "O  there's  Amy,"  she  passed 
into  the  adjoining  apartment,  leaving  the  doot 
open  behind  her. 

I  saw  a  quick  interchange  of  greetings  be- 
tween her  and  a  fashionably  dressed  lady,  then 
they  withdrew  to  one  side  with  the  ornament 
I  had  brought,  evidently  consulting  in  regard 
to  its  merits.  Now  was  my  time.  The  book 
in  which  she  had  placed  the  letter  she  had  been 
writing  lay  on  the  table  right  before  me,  not 
two  inches  from  my  hand.  I  had  only  to  throw 
back  the  cover  and  my  curiosity  would  be  sat- 
isfied. Taking  advantage  of  a  moment  when 
their  backs  were  both  turned,  I  pressed  open 
the  book  with  a  careful  hand,  and  with  one  eye 
on  them  and  one  on  the  sheet  before  me,  man- 
aged to  read  these  words  : — 

MY  DEAREST  CECILIA. 

I  have  tried  in  vain  to  match  the 

sample  you  sent  me  at  Stewart's,  Arnold's  and  McCreery's. 
If  you  still  insist  upon  making  up  the  dress  in  the  way 
you  propose,  I  will  see  what  Madame  Dudevant  can  do 
for  us,  though  I  cannot  but  advise  you  to  alter  your  plans 
and  make  the  darker  shade  of  velvet  do.  I  went  to  the 
Gary  reception  last  night  and  met  Lulu  Chittenden.  She 


1 1 6  A    Word   Overheard. 

has  actually  grown  old,  but  was  as  lively  as  ever.  She 
created  a  great  stir  in  Paris  when  she  was  there  ;  but  a 
husband  who  comes  home  two  o'clock  in  the  morning 
with  bleared  eyes  and  empty  pockets,  is  not  conducive  to 
the  preservation  of  a  woman's  beauty.  How  she  manages 
to  retain  her  spirits  I  cannot  imagine.  You  ask  me  news 
of  cousin  Holman.  I  meet  him  occasionally  and  he  looks 
well,  but  has  grown  into  the  most  sombre  man  you  ever 
saw.  In  regard  to  certain  hopes  of  which  you  have  some- 
times made  mention,  let  me  assure  you  they  are  no  longer 
practicable.  He  has  done  what — 

Here  the  conversation  ceased  in  the  other 
room,  the  Countess  made  a  movement  of  ad- 
vance and  I  closed  the  book  with  an  inward 
groan  over  my  ill-luck. 

"  It  is  very  pretty,"  said  she  with  a  weary 
air  ;  "but  as  I  remarked  before,  I  am  not  in  the 
buying  mood.  If  you  will  take  half  you  men- 
tion, I  may  consider  the  subject,  but — " 

"  Pardon  me,  Madame,"  I  interrupted,  being 
in  no  wise  anxious  to  leave  the  placque  behind 
me,  "  I  have  been  considering  the  matter  and 

I  hold  to  my  original  price.     Mr.  Blake  of  Sec- 
ond Avenue  may  give  it  to  me  if  you  do  not." 

"Mr.  Blake!"     She  eyed  me   suspiciously. 

II  Do  you  sell  to  him  ?  " 


A   Word  Overheard.  117 

"  I  sell  to  anyone  I  can,"  replied  I  ;  "  and 
as  he  has  an  artist's  eye  for  such  things — " 

Her  brows  knitted  and  she  turned  away.  "  I 
do  not  want  it ;  "  said  she,  "  sell  it  to  whom  you 
please." 

I  took  up  the  piacque  and  left  the  room. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  FEW   GOLDEN   HAIRS. 

WHEN  a  few  days  from  that  I  made  my 
appearance  before  Mr.  Gryce,  it  was  to 
find  him  looking  somewhat  sober.  "  Those 
Schoenmakers,"  said  he,  "  are  making  a  deal 
of  trouble.  It  seems  they  escaped  the  fellows 
up  north  and  are  now  somewhere  in  this  city, 
but  where— 

An  expressive  gesture  finished  the  sentence. 

"  Is  that  so  ?  "  exclaimed  I.  "  Then  we  are 
sure  to  nab  them.  Given  time  and  a  pair  of 
low,  restless  German  thieves,  I  will  wager  any- 
thing, our  hands  will  be  upon  them  before  the 
month  is  over.  I  only  hope,  when  we  do  come 
across  them,  it  will  not  be  to  find  their  betters 
too  much  mixed  up  with  their  devilish  prac- 
tices." And  I  related  to  him  what  Fanny  had 
told  me  a  few  evenings  before. 


A  Few  Golden    Hairs.  119 

"  The  coil  is  tightening,"  said  he.  "  What 
the  end  will  be  I  don't  know.  Crime,  said  she  ? 
I  wish  I  knew  in  what  blind  hole  of  the  earth 
that  girl  we  are  after  lies  hidden. 

As  if  in  answer  to  this  wish  the  door  opened 
and  one  of  our  men  came  in  with  a  letter  in 
his  hand.  "  Ha  !  "  exclaimed  Mr.  Gryce,  after 
he  had  perused  it,  "  look  at  that." 

I  took  the  letter  from  his  hand  and  read  : 

The  dead  body  of  a  girl  such  as  you  describe  was 
found  in  the  East  river  off  Fiftieth  Street  this  morning. 
From  appearance  has  been  dead  some  time.  Have  tele- 
graphed to  Police  Headquarters  for  orders.  Should  you 
wish  to  see  the  body  before  it  is  removed  to  the  Morgue 
or  otherwise  disturbed,  please  hasten  to  Pier  48  E.  R. 

GRAHAM. 

"  Come,"  said  I,  "  let's  go  and  see  for  our- 
selves. If  it  should  be  the  one — 

"  The  dinner  party  proposed  by  Mr.  Blake 
for  to-night,  may  have  its  interruptions,"  he 
remarked. 

I  do  not  wish  to  make  my  story  any  longer 
than  is  necessary,  but  I  must  say  that  when  in 
an  hour  or  so  later,  I  stood  with  Mr.  Gryce 
before  the  unconscious  form  of  that  poor 


I2O  A  Few   Golden  Hairs. 

drowned  girl  I  felt  an  unusual  degree  of  awe 
stealing  over  me  :  there  was  so  much  mystery 
connected  with  this  affair,  and  the  parties  im- 
plicated were  of  such  standing  and  repute. 

I  almost  dreaded  to  see  the  covering  re- 
moved from  her  face  lest  I  should  behold, 
what  ?  I  could  not  have  told  if  I  had  tried. 

"  A  trim  made  body  enough, "  cried  the 
official  in  charge  as  Mr.  Gryce  lifted  an  end  of 
the  cloth  that  enveloped  her  and  threw  it  back. 
"  Pity  the  features  are  not  better  preserved." 

"  No  need  for  us  to  see  the  features,"  ex- 
claimed I,  pointing  to  the  locks  of  golden  red 
hair  that  hung  in  tangled  masses  about  her. 
"  The  hair  is  enough  ;  she  is  not  the  one." 
And  I  turned  aside,  asking  myself  if  it  was  re- 
lief I  felt. 

To  my  surprise  Mr.  Gryce  did   not  follow. 

"  Tall,  thin,  white  face,  black  eyes."  I  heard 
him  whisper  to  himself.  "  It  is  a  pity  the  feat- 
ures are  not  better  preserved." 

"  But,"  said  I,  taking  him  by  the  arm,  "  Fanny 
spoke  particularly  of  her  hair  being  black,  while 
this  girl's — Good  heavens !  "  I  suddenly  ejacu- 
lated as  I  looked  again  at  the  prostrate  form 


A  Few   Golden  Hairs.  121 

before  me.  "  Yellow  hair  or  black,  this  is  the 
girl  I  saw  him  speaking  to  that  day  in  Broome 
Street.  I  remember  her  clothes  if  nothing 
more."  And  opening  my  pocketbook,  I  took 
out  the  morsel  of  cloth  I  had  plucked  that  day 
from  the  ash  barrel,  lifted  up  the  discolored 
rags  that  hung  about  the  body  and  compared 
the  two.  The  pattern,  texture  and  color  were 
the  same. 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Gryce,  pointing  to  certain 
contusions,  like  marks  from  the  blow  of  some 
heavy  instrument  on  the  head  and  bared  arms 
of  the  girl  before  us  ;  "he  will  have  to  answer 
me  one  question  anyhow,  and  that  is,  who  this 
poor  creature  is  who  lies  here  the  victim  of 
treachery  or  despair."  And  turning  to  the 
official  he  asked  if  there  were  any  other  signs 
of  violence  on  the  body. 

The  answer  came  deliberately,  "  Yes,  she 
has  evidently  been  battered  to  death." 

Mr.  Gryce's  lips  closed  with  grim  decision. 
"  A  most  brutal  murder,"  said  he  and  lifting 
up  the  cloth  with  a  hand  that  visibly  trembled, 
he  softly  covered  her  face. 

"  Well,"  said  I  as  we  slowly  paced  back  up 


122  A   Few  Golden  Hairs. 

the  pier,  "  there  is  one  thing  certain,  she  is  not 
the  one  who  disappeared  from  Mr.  Blake's 
house." 

"  I  am  not  so  sure  of  that." 

"  How  ! "  said  I.  "  You  believed  Fanny  lied 
when  she  gave  that  description  of  the  missing 
girl  upon  which  we  have  gone  till  now  ?  " 

Mr.  Gryce  smiled,  and  turning  back,  beck- 
oned to  the  official  behind  us.  "  Let  me  have 
that  description,"  said  he,  "  which  I  distributed 
among  the  Harbor  Police  some  days  ago  for  the 
identification  of  a  certain  corpse  I  was  on  the 
lookout  for." 

The  man  opened  his  coat  and  drew  out  a 
printed  paper  which  at  Mr.  Gryce's  word  he 
put  into  my  hand.  It  ran  as  follows  : 

Look  out  for  the  body  of  a  young  girl,  tall,  well  shaped 
but  thin,  of  fair  complexion  and  golden  hair  of  a  peculiar 
bright  and  beautiful  color,  and  when  found,  acquaint  me 
at  once.  G. 

"  I  don't  understand,"  began  I. 

But  Mr.  Gryce  tapping  me  on  the  arm  said 
in  his  most  deliberate  tones,  "  Next  time  you 
examine  3.  room  in  which  anything  of  a  mys- 


A  Few  Golden  Hairs.  123 

terious  nature  has  occurred,  look  under  the 
bureau  and  if  you  find  a  comb  there  with  sev- 
eral long  golden  hairs  tangled  in  it,  be  very 
sure  before  you  draw  any  definite  conclusionsf 
that  your  Fannys  know  what  they  are  talking 
about  when  they  declare  the  girl  who  used 
that  comb  had  biack  hair  on  her  head," 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  SECRET  OF  MR.  BLAKE'S  STUDIO. 

"IV  TR-  BLAKE  is  at  dinner,  sir,  with  com- 
J- V _L  pany,  but  I  will  call  him  if  you  say  so." 

"  No,"  returned  Mr.  Gryce  ;  "  show  us  into 
some  room  where  we  can  be  comfortable  and 
we  will  wait  till  he  has  finished." 

The  servant  bowed,  and  stepping  forward 
down  the  hall,  opened  the  door  of  a  small  and 
cosy  room  heavily  hung  with  crimson  curtains. 
"  I  will  let  him  know  that  you  are  here,"  said 
he,  and  vanished  towards  the  dining-room. 

"  I  doubt  if  Mr.  Blake  will  enjoy  the  latter 
half  of  his  bill  of  fare  as  much  as  the  first,"  said 
I,  drawing  up  one  of  the  luxurious  arm-chairs  to 
the  side  of  my  principal.  "  I  wonder  if  he  will 
break  away  from  his  guests  and  come  in  here  ?  " 

"  No  ;  if  I  am  not  mistaken  we  shall  find  Mr. 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.        1 2  5 

Blake  a  man  of  nerve.     Not  a  muscle  of  his 
face  will  show  that  he  is  disturbed." 

"  Well,"  said  I,  "  I  dread  it." 

Mr.  Gryce  looked  about  on  the  gorgeous 
walls  and  the  rich  old  fashioned  furniture  that 
surrounded  him,  and  smiled  one  of  his  grim- 
mest smiles. 

"  Well,  you  may,"  said  he. 

The  next  instant  a  servant  stood  in  the  door- 
way, bearing  to  our  great  astonishment,  a  tray 
well  set  with  decanter  and  glasses. 

"  Mr.  Blake's  compliments,  gentlemen,"  said 
he,  setting  it  down  on  the  table  before  us.  "  He 
hopes  you  will  make  yourselves  at  home  and  he 
will  see  you  as  soon  as  possible." 

The  humph  !  of  Mr.  Gryce  when  the  servant 
had  gone  would  have  done  your  soul  good,  also 
the  look  he  cast  at  the  pretty  Dresden  Shep- 
herdess on  the  mantel-piece,  as  I  reached  out 
my  hand  towards  the  decanter.  Somehow  it 
made  me  draw  back. 

"  I  think  we  had  better  leave  his  wine  alone," 
said  he. 

And  for  half  an  hour  we  sat  there,  the  wine 
untouched  between  us,  listening  alternately  to 


1 26        T/ie  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

the  sound  of  speech-making  and  laughter  that 
came  from  the  dining-room,  and  the  solemn 
ticking  of  the  clock  as  it  counted  out  the 
seconds  on  the  mantel-piece.  Then  the  guests 
came  in  from  the  table,  riling  before  us  past  the 
open  door  on  their  way  to  the  parlors.  They 
were  all  gentlemen  of  course — Mr.  Blake  never 
invited  ladies  to  his  house — and  gentlemen  of 
well  known  repute.  The  dinner  had  been 
given  in  honor  of  a  certain  celebrated  states- 
man, and  the  character  of  his  guests  was  in 
keeping  with  that  of  the  one  thus  compli- 
mented. 

As  they  went  by  us  gaily  indulging  in  the 
jokes  and  light  banter  with  which  such  men 
season  a  social  dinner,  I  saw  Mr.  Gryce's  face 
grow  sober  by  many  a  shade ;  and  when  in 
the  midst  of  it  all,  we  heard  the  voice  of  Mr. 
Blake  rise  in  that  courteous  and  measured  tone 
for  which  it  is  distinguished,  I  saw  him  reach 
forward  and  grasp  his  cane  with  an  uneasiness 
I  had  never  seen  displayed  by  him  before.  But 
when  some  time  later,  the  guests  having  de- 
parted, the  dignified  host  advanced  with  some 
apology  to  where  we  were,  I  never  beheld  a 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.       127 

firmer  look  on  Mr.  Gryce's  face  than  that  with 
which  he  rose  and  confronted  him.  Mr.  Blake's 
own  had  not  more  character  in  it. 

"  You  have  called  at  a  rather  inauspicious 
time,  Mr.  Gryce,"  said  the  latter,  glancing  at  the 
card  which  he  held  in  his  hand.  "  What  may 
your  business  be?  Something  to  do  with 
politics,  I  suppose." 

I  surveyed  the  man  in  amazement.  Was 
this  great  politician  stooping  to  act  a  part,  or 
had  he  forgotten  our  physiognomies  as  com- 
pletely as  appeared. 

"  Our  business  is  not  politics,"  replied  Mr. 
Gryce  ;  "  but  fully  as  important.  May  I  re- 
quest the  doors  be  closed  ?  " 

I  thought  Mr.  Blake  looked  surprised,  but  he 
immediately  stepped  to  the  door  and  shut  it. 
Then  coming  back,  he  looked  at  Mr.  Gryce 
more  closely  and  a  change  took  place  in  his 
manner. 

"  I  think  I  have  seen  you  before,"  said  he. 

Mr.  Gryce  bowed  with  just  the  suspicion 
of  a  smile.  "  I  have  had  the  honor  of  con- 
sulting you  before  in  this  very  house,"  observed 
he. 


128        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

A  look  of  full  recognition  passed  over  the 
dignified  countenance  of  the  man  before  us. 

"  I  remember,"  said  he,  shrugging  his  should- 
ers in  the  old  way.  "  You  are  interested  in 
some  servant  girl  or  other  who  ran  away  from 
this  house  a  week  or  so  ago.  Have  you  found 
her  ?  "  This  with  no  apparent  concern. 

"  We  think  we  have,"  rejoined  Mr.  Gryce 
with  some  solemnity.  "  The  river  gives  up  its 
prey  now  and  then,  Mr.  Blake." 

Still  only  that  look  of  natural  surprise. 

"  Indeed !  You  do  not  mean  to  say  she 
has  drowned  herself?  I  am  sorry  for  that,  a 
girl  who  had  once  lived  in  my  house.  What 

trouble  could  she  have  had  to  drive  her  to  such 

^  ~> » 
an  act: 

Mr.  Gryce  advanced  a  step  nearer  the 
gentleman. 

"That  is  what  we  have  come  here  to  learn," 
said  he  with  a  deliberation  that  yet  was  not 
lacking  in  the  respect  due  to  a  man  so  univer- 
sally esteemed  as  Mr.  Blake.  "  You  who  have 
seen  her  so  lately  ought  to  be  able  to  throw 
some  light  upon  the  subject  at  least." 

"  Mr.—  "  he  again  glanced  at  the  card,  "  Mr. 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.       129 

Gryce, — excuse  me — I  believe  I  told  you  when 
you  were  here  before  that  I  had  no  remem- 
brance of  this  girl  at  all.  That  if  such  a  person 
was  in  my  house  I  did  not  know  it,  and  that  all 
questions  put  to  me  on  that  subject  would  be 
so  much  labor  thrown  away." 

Mr.  Gryce  bowed.  "  I  remember,"  said  he. 
"  I  was  not  alluding  to  any  connection  you  may 
have  had  with  the  girl  in  this  house,  but  to 
the  interview  you  were  seen  to  have  with  her 
on  the  corner  of  Broome  Street  some  days  ago. 
You  had  such  an  interview,  did  you  not  ?  " 

A  flush,  deep  as  it  was  sudden,  swept  over 
Mr.  Blake's  usually  unmoved  cheek.  "  You 
are  transgressing  sir,"  said  he  and  stopped. 
Though  a  man  of  intense  personal  pride,  he 
had  but  little  of  that  quality  called  temper,  or 
perhaps  if  he  had,  thought  it  unwise  to  display 
it  on  this  occasion.  "  I  saw  and  spoke  to  a  girl 
on  the  corner  of  that  street  some  days  ago,"  he 
went  on  more  mildly,  "  but  that  she  was  the  one 
who  lived  here,  I  neither  knew  at  the  time  nor 
feel  willing  to  believe  now  without  positive 
proof."  Then  in  a  deep  ringing  tone  the  state- 
liness  of  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  de- 


1 30       The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

scribe,  he  Inquired,  "  Have  the  city  authorities 
presumed  to  put  a  spy  on  my  movements,  that 
the  fact  of  my  speaking  to  a  poor  forsaken 
Teature  on  the  corner  of  the  street  should  be 
not  only  noted  but  remembered  ?  " 

"  Mr.  Blake,"  observed  Mr.  Gryce,  and  I  de- 
clare I  was  proud  of  my  superior  at  that  mo- 
ment, "  no  man  who  is  a  true  citizen  and  a 
Christian  should  object  to  have  his  steps  fol- 
lowed, when  by  his  own  thoughtlessness,  per- 
haps, he  has  incurred  a  suspicion  which  de- 
mands it." 

"  And  do  you  mean  to  say  that  I  have  been 
followed,"  inquired  he,  clenching  his  hand  and 
looking  steadily,  but  with  a  blanching  cheek,  first 
at  Mr.  Gryce  then  at  me. 

"  It  was  indispensable,"  quoth  that  function- 
ary gently. 

The  outraged  gentleman  riveted  his  gaze 
upon  me.  "  In  town  and  out  of  town  ?  "  de- 
manded he. 

I  let  Mr.  Gryce  reply.  "  It  is  known  that  you 
have  lately  sought  to  visit  the  Schoenmakers," 
saJd  he. 

Mr.  Blake   drew  a  deep  breath,  cast  his  eyes 


The  Secret  of  Mr,  Blake  s  Studio.       131 

about  the  handsome  apartment  in  which  we 
were,  let  them  rest  for  a  moment  upon  a  port- 
rait that  graced  one  side  of  the  wall,  and  which 
was  I  have  since  learned  a  picture  of  his  father, 
and  slowly  drew  forward  a  chair.  "  Let  me 
hear  what  your  suspicions  are,"  said  he. 

I  noticed  Mr.  Gryce  colored  at  this  ;  he  had 
evidently  been  met  in  a  different  way  from 
what  he  expected.  "  Excuse  me,"  said  he,  "  I 
do  not  say  /have  any  suspicions  ;  my  errand  is 
simply  to  notify  you  of  the  death  of  the  girl  you 
were  seen  to  speak  with,  and  to  ask  whether  or 
not  you  can  give  us  any  information  that  can 
aid  us  in  the  matter  before  the  Coroner." 

"You  know  I  have  not.  If  I  have  been  as 
closely  followed  as  you  say,  you  must  know 
why  I  spoke  to  that  girl  and  others,  why  I  went 
to  the  house  of  the  Schoenmakers  and — Do 
you  know  ?  "  he  suddenly  inquired. 

Mr.  Gryce  was  not  the  man  to  answer  such  a 
question  as  that.  He  eyed  the  rich  signet  ring 
that  adorned  the  hand  of  the  gentleman  before 
him  and  suavely  smiled.  "  I  am  ready  to  listen 
to  any  explanations,"  said  he. 

Mr.   Blake's   haughty    countenance   became 


1 3  2        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

almost    stern.       "  You    consider    you   have    a 
right  to  demand  them  ;  let  me  hear  why." 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Gryce  with  a  change  of 
tone,  "  you  shall.  Unprofessional  as  it  is,  I 
will  tell  you  why  I,  a  member  of  the  police 
force,  dare  enter  the  house  of  such  a  man  as 
you  are,  and  put  him  the  questions  I  have  con- 
cerning his  domestic  affairs.  Mr.  Blake,  imag- 
ine yourself  in  a  detective's  office.  A  woman 
comes  in,  the  housekeeper  of  a  respected  citi- 
zen, and  informs  us  that  a  girl  employed  by  her 
as  seamstress  has  disappeared  in  a  very  un- 
accountable way  from  her  master's  house  the 
night  before ;  in  fact  been  abducted  as  she 
thinks  from  certain  evidences,  through  the 
window.  Her  manner  is  agitated,  her  appeal 
for  assistance  urgent,  though  she  acknowledges 
no  relationship  to  the  girl  or  expresses  any 
especial  cause  for  her  interest  beyond  that  of 
common  humanity.  '  She  must  be  found,'  she 
declares,  and  hints,  that  any  sum  necessary  will 
be  forthcoming,  though  from  what  source  after 
her  own  pittance  is  expended  she  does  not 
state.  When  asked  if  her  master  has  no  in- 
terest in  the  matter,  she  changes  color  and 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.       1 33 

puts  us  off.  He  never  noticed  his  servants, 
left  all  such  concerns  to  her,  etc.  ;  but  shows 
fear  when  a  proposition  is  made  to  consult  him. 
Next  imagine  yourself  with  the  detectives  in 
that  gentleman's  house.  You  enter  the  girl's 
room  ;  what  is  the  first  thing  you  observe  ? 
Why  that  it  is  not  only  one  of  the  best  in  the 
house,  but  that  it  is  conspicuous  for  its  comforts 
if  not  for  its  elegancies.  More  than  that,  that 
there  are  books  of  poetry  and  history  lying 
around,  showing  that  the  woman  who  inhabited 
it  was  above  her  station ;  a  fact  which  the  house- 
keeper is  presently  brought  to  acknowledge. 
You  notice  also  that  the  wild  surmise  of  her 
abduction  by  means  of  the  window,  has  some 
ground  in  appearance,  though  the  fact  that  she 
went  with  entire  unwillingness  is  not  made  so 
apparent.  The  housekeeper,  however,  insists 
in  a  way  that  must  have  had  some  special 
knowledge  of  the  girl's  character  or  circum- 
stances to  back  it,  that  she  never  went  without 
compulsion  ;  a  statement  which  the  torn  cur- 
tains and  the  track  of  blood  over  the  roof  of 
the  extension,  would  seem  to  emphasize.  A 
few  other  facts  are  made  known.  First,  a  pen- 


134        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

knife  is  picked  up  from  the  grass  plot  in  the 
yard  beneath,  showing  with  what  instrument 
the  wound  was  inflicted,  whose  drippings  made 
those  marks  of  blood  alluded  to.  It  was  a 
pearl-handled  knife  belonging  to  the  writing- 
desk  found  open  on  her  table,  and  its  frail  and 
dainty  character  proved  indisputably,  that  it 
was  employed  by  the  girl  herself,  and  that 
against  manifest  enemies  ;  no  man  being  likely 
to  snatch  up  any  such  puny  weapon  for  the 
purpose  either  of  offence  or  defence.  That 
these  enemies  were  two  and  were  both  men, 
was  insisted  upon  by  Mrs.  Daniels  who  over- 
heard their  voices  the  night  before. 

"  Mr.  Blake,  such  facts  as  these  arouse  curi- 
osity, especially  when  the  master  of  the  house 
being  introduced  upon  the  scene,  he  fails  to 
manifest  common  human  interest,  while  his 
housekeeper  betrays  in  every  involuntary  ges- 
ture and  expression  she  makes  use  of,  her  hor- 
ror if  not  her  fear  of  his  presence,  and  her  relief 
at  his  departure.  Yes,"  he  exclaimed,  unheed- 
ing the  sudden  look  here  cast  him  by  Mr.  Blake, 
"  and  curiosity  begets  inquiry,  and  inquiry  elu- 
cidated further  facts  such  as  these,  that  the 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.       135 

mysterious  master  of  the  house  was  in  his  gar- 
den at  the  hour  of  the  girl's  departure,  was  even 
looking  through  the  bars  of  his  gate  when  she, 
having  evidently  escaped  from  her  captors, 
came  back  with  every  apparent  desire  to  re- 
enter  her  home,  but  seeing  him,  betrayed  an 
unreasonable  amount  of  fear  and  fled  back 
even  into  the  very  arms  of  the  men  she  had 
endeavored  to  avoid.  Did  you  speak  sir?  " 
asked  Mr.  Gryce  suddenly  stopping,  with  a  sly 
look  at  his  left  boot  tip. 

Mr.  Blake  shook  his  head.  "  No,"  said  he 
shortly,  "  go  on."  But  that  last  remark  of  Mr. 
Gryce  had  evidently  made  its  impression. 

"  Inquiry  revealed,  also,  two  or  three  other 
interesting  facts.  First,  that  this  gentleman 
qualified  though  he  was  to  shine  in  ladies'  society, 
never  obtruded  himself  there,  but  employed  his 
leisure  time  instead,  in  walking  the  lower  streets 
of  the  city,  where  he  was  seen  more  than  once 
conversing  with  certain  poor  girls  at  street 
corners  and  in  blind  alleys.  The  last  one  he 
talked  with,  believed  from  her  characteristics 
to  be  the  same  one  that  was  abducted  from 
his  house — " 


1 36        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

"  Hold  there,"  said  Mr.  Blake  with  some  au 
thority  in  his  tone,  "  there  you  are  mistaken ', 
that  is  impossible." 

"  Ah,  and  why  ?  " 

"  The  girl  you  allude  to  had  bright  golden 
hair,  something  which  the  woman  who  lived  in 
my  house  did  not  possess." 

"  Indeed.  I  thought  you  had  never  noticed 
the  woman  who  sewed  for  you,  sir, — did  not 
know  how  she  looked  ?  " 

"  I  should  have  noticed  her  if  she  had  had 
such  hair  as  the  girl  you  speak  of." 

Mr.  Gryce  smiled  and  opened  his  pocketbook. 

"  There  is  a  sample  of  her  hair,  sir,"  said 
he,  taking  out  a  thin  strand  of  brilliant  hair 
and  showing  it  to  the  gentleman  before  him. 
"  Bright  you  see,  and  golden  as  that  of  the  un- 
fortunate creature  you  talked  with  the  other 
night." 

Mr.  Blake  stooped  forward  and  lifted  it  with 
a  hand  that  visibly  trembled.  "  Where  did  you 
get  this  ?  "  asked  he  at  last,  clenching  it  to  his 
breast  with  sudden  passion. 

"  From  out  of  the  comb  which  the  girl  had 
been  using  the  night  before." 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.        137 

The  imperious  man  flung  it  hastily  from  him. 

"  We  waste  our  time,"  said  he,  looking 
Mr.  Gryce  intently  in  the  face.  "  All  that 
you  have  said  does  not  account  for  your  pres- 
ence here  nor  the  tone  you  have  used  while 
addressing  me.  What  are  you  keeping  back? 
I  am  not  a  man  to  be  trifled  with." 

Mr.  Gryce  rose  to  his  feet.  "  You  are 
right,"  said  he,  and  he  gave  a  short  glance  in 
my  direction.  "  All  that  I  have  said  would  not 
perhaps  justify  me  in  this  intrusion,  if — "  he 
looked  again  towards  me.  "  Do  you  wish  me 
to  continue  ?  "  he  asked. 

Mr.  Blake's  intent  look  deepened.  "  I  see 
no  reason  why  you  should  not  utter  the  whole," 
said  he.  "  A  good  story  loses  nothing  by 
being  told  to  the  end.  You  wish  to  say  some- 
thing about  my  journey  to  Schoenmaker's 
house,  I  suppose." 

Mr.  Gryce  gravely  shook  his  head. 

"  What,  you  can  let  such  a  mystery  as  that 
go  without  a  word  ?  " 

"  I  am  not  here  to  discuss  mysteries  that 
have  no  connection  with  the  sewing-girl  in 
whose  cause  I  am  interested." 


1 38        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

"  Then,"  said  Mr.  Blake,  turning  for  the  first 
time  upon  my  superior  with  all  the  dignified 
composure  for  which  he  was  eminent,  "  it  is  no 
longer  necessary  for  us  to  prolong  this  inter- 
view. I  have  allowed,  nay  encouraged  you  to 
state  in  the  plainest  terms  what  it  was  you  had 
or  imagined  you  had  against  me,  knowing  that 
my  actions  of  late,  seen  by  those  who  did  not 
possess  the  key  to  them,  must  have  seemed  a 
little  peculiar.  But  when  you  say  you  have  no 
interest  in  any  mystery  disconnected  with  the 
girl  who  has  lived  the  last  few  months  in  my 
house,  I  can  with  assurance  say  that  it  is  time 
we  quitted  this  unprofitable  conversation,  as 
nothing  which  I  have  lately  done,  said  or 
thought  here  or  elsewhere  has  in  any  way  had 
even  the  remotest  bearing  upon  that  individual ; 
she  having  been  a  stranger  to  me  while  in  my 
house,  and  quite  forgotten  by  me,  after  her 
unaccountable  departure  hence." 

Mr.  Gryce's  hand  which  had  been  stretched 
out  towards  the  hitherto  untouched  decanter 
before  him,  suddenly  dropped.  "  You  deny 
then,"  said  he,  "  all  connection  between  your- 
self and  the  woman,  lady  or  sewing-girl,  who 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.        1 39 

occupied  that  room  above  our  heads  for  eleven 
months  previous  to  the  Sunday  morning  I  first 
had  the  honor  to  make  your  acquaintance." 

"  I  am  not  in  the  habit  of  repeating  my  as- 
sertions," said  Mr.  Blake  with  some  severity, 
"  even  when  they  relate  to  a  less  disagreeable 
matter  than  the  one  under  discussion." 

Mr.  Gryce  bowed,  and  slowly  reached  out  for 
his  hat ;  I  had  never  seen  him  so  disturbed.  "I 
am  sorry,"  he  began  and  stopped,  fingering  his 
hat-brim  nervously.  Suddenly  he  laid  his  hat 
back,  and  drew  up  his  form  into  as  near  a  sem- 
blance of  dignity  as  its  portliness  would  allow. 

"  Mr.  Blake,"  said  he,  "  I  have  too  much  res- 
pect for  the  man  I  believed  you  to  be  when  I 
entered  this  house  to-night,  to  go  with  the  thing 
unsaid  which  is  lying  at  present  like  a  dead 
weight  upon  my  lips.  I  dare  not  leave  you  to 
the  consequence  of  my  silence  ;  for  duty  will 
compel  me  to  speak  some  day  and  in  some 
presence  where  you  may  not  have  the  oppor- 
tunity which  you  can  have  here,  to  explain 
yourself  with  satisfaction.  Mr.  Blake  I  cannot 
believe  you  when  you  say  the  girl  who  lived  in 
this  house  was  a  stranger  to  you." 


1 40        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

Mr.  Blake  drew  his  proud  form  up  in  a  dis- 
dain that  was  only  held  in  check  by  the  very 
evident  honesty  of  the  man  before  him.  "You 
are  courageous  at  least,"  said  he.  "  I  regret 
you  are  not  equally  discriminating."  And 
raising  Mr.  Gryce's  hat  he  placed  it  in  his  hand. 

"  Pardon  me,"  said  that  gentleman,  "  I  would 
like  to  justify  myself  before  I  go.  Not  with 
words,"  he  proceeded  as  the  other  folded  his 
arms  with  a  sarcastic  bow.  "  I  am  done  with 
words ;  action  accomplishes  the  rest.  Mr. 
Blake  I  believe  you  consider  me  an  honest 
officer  and  a  reliable  man.  Will  you  accom- 
pany me  to  your  private  room  for  a  moment  ? 
There  is  something  there  which  may  convince 
you  I  was  neither  playing  the  fool  nor  the 
bravado  when  I  uttered  the  phrase  I  did  an  in- 
stant ago." 

I  expected  to  hear  the  haughty  master  of  the 
house  refuse  a  request  so  peculiar.  But  he  only 
bowed,  though  in  a  surprised  way  that  showed 
his  curiosity  if  no  more  was  aroused.  "  My 
room  and  company  are  at  your  disposal,"  said 
he,  "  but  you  will  find  nothing  there  to  justify 
you  in  your  assertions." 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.        141 

"  Let  me  at  least  make  the  effort,"  entreated 
my  superior. 

Mr.  Blake  smiling  bitterly  immediately  led 
the  way  to  the  door.  "  The  man  may  come," 
he  remarked  carelessly  as  Mr.  Gryce  waved  his 
hand  in  my  direction.  "  Your  justification  \\ 
not  mine  may  need  witnesses." 

Rejoiced  at  the  permission,  for  my  curiosity 
was  by  this  time  raised  to  fever  pitch,  I  at  once 
followed.  Not  without  anxiety.  The  assured 
poise  of  Mr.  Blake's  head  seemed  to  argue  that 
the  confidence  betrayed  by  my  superior  might 
receive  a  shock ;  and  I  felt  it  would  be  a  seri- 
ous blow  to  his  pride  to  fail  now.  But  once 
within  -the  room  above,  my  doubts  speedily  fled. 
There  was  that  in  Mr.  Gryce's  face  which  any- 
one acquainted  with  him  could  not  easily  mis- 
take. Whatever  might  be  the  mysterious  some- 
thing which  the  room  contained,  it  was  evidently 
sufficient  in  his  eyes  to  justify  his  whole  conduct. 

"  Now  sir,"  said  Mr.  Blake,  turning  upon  my 
superior  with  his  sternest  expression,  "  the 
room  and  its  contents  are  before  you  ;  what 
have  you  to  say  for  yourself." 

Mr.  Gryce  equally  stern,  if  not  equally  com- 


142        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

posed,  cast  one  of  his  inscrutable  glances  round 
the  apartment  and  without  a  word  stepped  be- 
fore the  picture  that  was  as  I  have  said,  the 
only  ornamentation  of  the  otherwise  bare  and 
unattractive  room. 

I  thought  Mr.  Blake  looked  surprised,  but  his 
face  was  not  one  that  lightly  expressed  emotion. 

"  A  portrait  of  my  cousin  the  Countess  De 
Mirac,"  said  he  with  a  certain  dryness  of  tone 
hard  to  interpret. 

Mr.  Gryce  bowed  and  for  a  moment  stood 
looking  with  a  strange  lack  of  interest  at  the 
proudly  brilliant  face  of  the  painting  before 
him,  then  to  our  great  amazement  stepped  for- 
ward and  with  a  quick  gesture  turned  the 
picture  rapidly  to  the  wall,  when — Gracious 
heavens !  what  a  vision  started  out  before  us 
from  the  reverse  side  of  that  painted  canvas! 
No  luxurious  brunette  countenance  now, 
steeped  in  pride  and  languor,  but  a  face — 
Let  me  see  if  I  can  describe  it.  But  no,  it  was 
one  of  those  faces  that  are  indescribable.  You 
draw  your  breath  as  you  view  it ;  you  feel  as 
if  you  had  had  an  electric  shock  ;  but  as  for 
knowing  ten  minutes  later  whether  the  eyes 


The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio.       143 

that  so  enthralled  you  were  blue  or  black,  or 
the  locks  that  clustered  halo-like  about  a  fore- 
head almost  awful  in  its  expression  of  weird, 
unfathomable  power,  were  brown  or  red,  you 
could  not  nor  would  you  pretend  to  say.  It 
was  the  character  of  the  countenance  itself  that 
impressed  you.  You  did  not  even  know  if  this 
woman  who  might  have  been  anything  wonder- 
ful or  grand  you  ever  read  of,  were  beautiful  or 
not.  You  did  not  care  ;  it  was  as  if  you  had 
been  gazing  on  a  tranquil  evening  sky  and  a 
lightning  flash  had  suddenly  startled  you.  Is 
the  lightning  beautiful  ?  Who  asks !  But  I 
know  from  what  presently  transpired,  that  the 
face  was  ivory  pale  in  complexion,  the  eyes 
deeply  dark,  and  the  hair, — strange  and  un- 
canny combination, — of  a  bright  and  peculiar 
golden  hue. 

"  You  dare ! "  came  forth  in  strange  broken 
tones  from  Mr.  Blake's  lips. 

I  instantly  turned  towards  him.  He  was 
gazing  with  a  look  that  was  half  indignant,  half 
menacing  at  the  silent  detective  who  with  eyes 
drooped  and  finger  directed  towards  the  pic- 
ture, seemed  to  be  waiting  for  him  to  finish. 


1 44        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

u  I  do  not  understand  an  audacity  that  allows 
you  to  — to —  Was  this  the  haughty  gentle- 
man we  had  known,  this  hesitating  troubled 
man  with  bloodless  lips  and  trembling  hands  ? 

"  I  declared  my  desire  to  justify  myself," 
said  my  principal  with  a  respectful  bow.  "  This 
is  my  justification.  Do  you  note  the  color  of 
the  woman's  hair  whose  portrait  hangs  with  its 
face  turned  to  the  wall  in  your  room  ?  Is  it 
like  or  unlike  that  of  the  strand  you  held  in 
your  hand  a  few  moments  ago  ;  a  strand  taken 
as  I  swear,  hair  by  hair  from  the  comb  of  the 
poor  creature  who  occupied  the  room  above. 
But  that  is  not  all,"  he  continued  as  Mr.  Blake 
fell  a  trifle  aback;  "just  observe  the  dress  in 
which  this  woman  is  painted  ;  blue  silk  you  see, 
dark  and  rich  ;  a  wide  collar  cunningly  exe- 
cuted, you  can  almost  trace  the  pattern ;  a 
brooch  ;  then  the  roses  in  the  hand,  do  you 
see  ?  Now  come  with  me  upstairs." 

Too  much  startled  to  speak,  Mr.  Blake, 
haughty  aristocrat  as  he  was,  turned  like  a 
little  child  and  followed  the  detective  who  with 
an  assured  step  and  unembarassed  mien  led  the 
way  into  the  deserted  room  above. 


7\e  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake's  Studio. 

"  You  accuse  me  of  insulting  you,  when  I 
express  disbelief  of  your  assertion  that  there 
was  no  connection  between  you  and  the  girl 
Emily,"  said  Mr.  Gryce  as  he  lit  the  gas  and 
unlocked  that  famous  bureau  drawer.  "  Will 
you  do  so  any  longer  in  face  of  these  ?  "  And 
drawing  off  the  towel  that  lay  uppermost,  he  re- 
vealed the  neatly  folded  dress,  wide  collar, 
brooch  and  faded  roses  that  lay  beneath.  "  Mrs. 
Daniels  assures  us  these  articles  belonged  to 
the  sewing- woman  Emily  ;  were  brought  here 
by  her.  Dare  you  say  they  are  not  the  ones 
reproduced  in  the  portrait  below  ?  " 

Mr.  Blake  uttering  a  cry  sank  on  his  knees 
before  the  drawer.  "  My  God !  My  God !  " 
was  his  only  reply,  "  what  are  these  ?  "  Sud- 
denly he  rose,  his  whole  form  quivering,  his 
eyes  burning.  "  Where  is  Mrs.  Daniels  ?  "  he 
cried,  hastily  advancing  and  pulling  the  bell. 
"  I  must  see  her  at  once.  Send  the  house- 
keeper here,"  he  ordered  as  Fanny  smiling  de- 
murely made  her  appearance  at  the  door. 

"  Mrs.  Daniels  is  out,"  returned  the  girl, 
"  went  out  as  soon  as  ever  you  got  up  from 
dinner,  sir." 


146        The  Secret  of  Mr.  Blake  s  Studio. 

"  Gone  out  at  this  hour  ?  " 

"  Yes  sir ;  she  goes  out  very  often  nowadays, 
sir." 

Her  master  frowned.  "  Send  her  to  me  as 
soon  as  she  returns,"  he  commanded,  and  dis- 
missed the  girl. 

"  I  don't  know  what  to  make  of  this,"  he  now 
said  in  a  strange  tone,  approaching  again  the 
touching  contents  of  that  open  bureau  drawer 
with  a  look  in  which  longing  and  doubt  seemed 
in  some  way  to  be  strangely  commingled.  "  I 
cannot  explain  the  presence  of  these  articles  in 
this  room;  but  if  you  will  come  below  I  will 
see  what  I  can  do  to  make  other  matters  intel- 
ligible to  you.  Disagreeable  as  it  is  for  me  to 
take  anyone  into  my  confidence,  affairs  have 
gone  too  far  for  me  to  hope  any  longer  to  pre- 
serve secrecy  as  to  my  private  concerns." 


CHAPTER  XI. 

LUTTRA. 

"/^ENTLEMEN,"  said  he  as  he  ushered  us 
VJ  once  more  into  his  studio,  "  you  have 
presumed,  and  not  without  reason  I  should  say, 
to  infer  that  the  original  of  this  portrait  and  the 
woman  who  has  so  long  occupied  the  position 
of  sewing-woman  in  my  house,  are  one  and  the 
same.  You  will  no  longer  retain  that  opinion 
when  I  inform  you  that  this  picture,  strange  as 
it  may  appear  to  you,  is  the  likeness  of  my 
wife." 

"  Wife !  "  We  both  were  astonished  as  I  take 
it,  but  it  was  my  voice  which  spoke.  "  We  were 
ignorant  you  ever  had  a  wife." 

"  No  doubt,"  continued  our  host  smiling  bit- 
terly, "  that  at  least  has  evaded  the  knowledge 
even  of  the  detectives."  Then  with  a  return  to 
his  naturally  courteous  manner,  "  She  was 

147 


1 48  Luttra. 

never  acknowledged  by  me  as  my  wife,  nor 
have  we  ever  lived  together,  but  if  priestly 
benediction  can  make  a  man  and  woman  one, 
that  woman  as  you  see  her  there  is  my  lawful 
wife." 

Rising,  he  softly  turned  the  lovely,  potent 
face  back  to  the  wall,  leaving  us  once  more 
confronted  by  the  dark  and  glowing  counte- 
nance of  his  cousin. 

"  I  am  not  called  upon,"  said  he,  "  to  go  any 
further  with  you  than  this.  I  have  told  you 
what  no  man  till  this  hour  has  ever  heard  from 
my  lips,  and  it  should  serve  to  exonerate  me 
from  any  unjust  suspicions  you  may  have  enter- 
tained. But  to  one  of  my  temperament,  secret 
scandal  and  the  gossip  it  engenders  is  only  less 
painful  than  open  notoriety.  If  I  leave  the  sub- 
ject here,  a  thousand  conjectures  will  at  once 
seize  upon  you,  and  my  name  if  not  hers  will 
become,  before  I  know  it,  the  football  of  gossip 
if  not  of  worse  and  deeper  suspicion  than  has 
yet  assailed  me.  Gentleman  I  take  you  to  be 
honest  men  ;  husbands,  perhaps,  and  fathers ; 
proud,  too,  in  your  way  and  jealous  of  your 
own  reputation  and  that  of  those  with  whom 


Luttra.  149 

you  are  connected.  If  I  succeed  in  convincing 
you  that  my  movements  of  late  have  been 
totally  disconnected  with  the  girl  whose  cause 
you  profess  solely  to  be  interested  in,  may  I 
count  upon  your  silence  as  regards  those  act- 
ions and  the  real  motive  that  led  to  them  ?  " 

"  You  may  count  upon  my  discretion  as  re- 
gards all  matters  that  do  not  come  under  the 
scope  of  police  duty,"  returned  Mr.  Gryce.     "  I 
haven't  much  time  for  gossip." 
"  And  your  man  here  ?  " 
"  O,  he's  safe  where  it  profits  him  to  be." 
"  Very  well,  then,  I  shall  count  upon  you." 
And  with   the  knitted   brows    and    clinched 
hands  of  a  proudly  reticent  man  who,  perhaps 
for  the  first  time  in  his  life  finds  himself  forced 
to  reveal  his  inner  nature  to  the  world,  he  began 
his  story  in  these  words  : 

"  Difficult  as  it  is  for  me  to  introduce  into  a 
relation  like  this  the  name  of  my  father,  I 
shall  be  obliged  to  do  so  in  order  to  make  my 
conduct  at  a  momentous  crisis  of  my  life  in- 
telligible to  you.  My  father,  then,  was  a  man 
of  strong  will  and  a  few  but  determined  preju- 
dices. Resolved  that  I  should  sustain  the  repu- 


1 5o  Luttra. 

tation  of  the  family  for  wealth  and  respecta- 
bility, he  gave  me  to  understand  from  my  ear- 
liest years,  that  as  long  as  I  preserved  my  man- 
hood from  reproach,  I  had  only  to  make  my 
wishes  known,  to  have  them  immediately  grat- 
ified ;  while  if  I  crossed  his  will  either  by  in- 
dulging in  dissipation  or  engaging  in  pursuits 
unworthy  of  my  name,  I  no  longer  need  expect 
the  favor  of  his  countenance  or  the  assistance 
of  his  purse. 

"  When,  therefore,  at  a  certain  period  of  my 
life,  I  found  that  the  charms  of  my  cousin  Evelyn 
were  making  rather  too  strong  an  impression 
upon  my  fancy  for  a  secured  peace  of  mind,  I 
first  inquired  how  such  a  union  would  affect  my 
father,  and  learning  that  it  would  be  in  direct 
opposition  to  his  views,  cast  about  in  my  mind 
what  I  should  do  to  overcome  my  passion. 
Travel  suggested  itself,  and  I  took  a  trip  to 
Europe.  But  the  sight  of  new  faces  only 
awakened  in  me  comparisons  anything  but 
detrimental  to  the  beauty  of  her  who  was  at 
that  time  my  standard  of  feminine  loveliness. 
Nature  and  the  sports  connected  with  a  wild 
life  were  my  next  resort.  I  went  overland  to 


Luttra.  1 5 1 

California,  roamed  the  orange  groves  of  Florida, 
and  probed  the  wildernesses  of  Canada  and  our 
Northern  states.  It  was  during  these  last  ex- 
cursions that  an  event  occurred  which  has 
exercised  the  most  material  influence  upon  my 
fate,  though  at  the  time  it  seemed  to  me  no 
more  than  the  matter  of  a  day. 

"  I  had  just  returned  from  Canada  and  was 
resting  in  tolerable  enjoyment  of  a  very  beauti- 
ful autumn  at  Lake  George,  when  a  letter 
reached  me  from  a  friend  then  loitering  in  the 
vicinity,  urging  me  to  join  him  in  a  certain 
small  town  in  Vermont  where  trout  streams 
abounded  and  what  is  not  so  often  the  case 
under  the  circumstances,  fishers  were  few. 

"  Being  in  a  somewhat  reckless  mood  I  at 
once  wrote  a  consent,  and  before  another  day 
was  over,  started  for  the  remote  village  whence 
his  letter  wa_  postmarked.  I  found  it  by  no 
means  easy  of  Access.  Situated  in  the  midst  of 
hills  some  enty  miles  or  so  distant  from  any 
railroad,  I  (Hoovered  that  in  order  to  reach  it, 
a  long  ride  in  a  stage-coach  was  necessary,  fol- 
lowed by  a  somewhat  shorter  journey  on  horse- 
back. Not  being  acquainted  with  the  route,  I 


1 52  Luttra. 

timed  my   connections    wrong,  so   that   when 
evening  came   I   found   myself  riding   over  a 
strange  road  in  the  darkest  night  I  had  ever 
known.     As  if  this  was  not  enough,  my  horse 
suddenly  began  to  limp  and  presently  became 
so  lame  I  found  it  impossible  to  urge  her  be- 
yond a  slow  walk.     It  was  therefore  with  no 
ordinary  satisfaction  that  I  presently  beheld  a 
lighted  building  in  the  distance,  which  as  I  ap- 
proached resolved  itself  into  an  inn.     Stopping 
in  front  of  the  house,  which  was  closed  against 
the  chill  night  air,  I  called  out  lustily  for  some- 
one  to   take    my  horse,  whereupon   the  door 
opened  and  a  man  appeared  on  the  threshold 
with  a  lantern  in  his  hand.     I  at  once  made  my 
wishes  known,  receiving  in  turn  a  somewhat 
gruff, 

"  '  Well  it  is  a  nasty  night  and  it  will  be 
nastier  before  it's  over ;  '  an  opinion  instantly 
endorsed  by  a  sudden  swoop  of  wind  that 
rushed  by  at  that  moment,  slamming  the  door 
behind  him  and  awakening  over  my  head  a 
lugubrious  groaning  as  from  the  twisting  boughs 
of  some  old  tree,  that  was  almost  threatening  in 
its  character. 


Luttra.  163 

"  '  You  had  better  go  in,'  said  he,  '  the  rain 
will  come  next.' 

"  I  at  once  leaped  from  my  horse  and  pushing 
open  the  door  with  main  strength,  entered  the 
house.  Another  man  met  me  on  the  threshold 
who  merely  pointing  over  his  shoulder  to  a 
lighted  room  in  his  rear,  passed  out  without  a 
word,  to  help  the  somewhat  younger  man,  who 
had  first  appeared,  in  putting  up  my  horse.  I 
at  once  accepted  his  silent  invitation  and  stepped 
into  the  room  before  me.  Instantly  I  found 
myself  confronted  by  the  rather  startling  vision 
of  a  young  girl  of  a  unique  and  haunting  style 
of  beauty,  who  rising  at  my  approach  now  stood 
with  her  eyes  on  my  face  and  her  hands  resting 
on  the  deal  table  before  which  she  had  been 
sitting,  in  an  attitude  expressive  of  mingled  sur- 
prise and  alarm.  To  see  a  woman  in  that  place 
was  not  so  strange  ;  but  such  a  woman !  Even 
in  the  first  casual  glance  I  gave  her,  I  at 
once  acknowledged  to  myself  her  extraordinary 
power.  Not  the  slightness  of  her  form,  the 
palor  of  her  countenance,  or  the  fairness  of  the 
locks  of  golden  red  hair  that  fell  in  two  long 
braids  over  her  bosom,  could  for  a  moment 


1 54  L,uttra. 

counteract  the  effect  of  her  dark  glance  or  the 
vivid  almost  unearthly  force  of  her  expression 
It  was  as  if  you  saw  a  flame  upstarting  be- 
fore you,  waving  tremulously  here  and  there, 
but  burning  and  resistless  in  its  white  heat.  I 
took  off  my  hat  with  deference. 

"  A  shudder  passed  over  her,  but  she  made 
no  effort  to  return  my  acknowledgement.  As 
we  cast  our  eyes  dilating  with  horror,  down 
some  horrible  pit  upon  whose  verge  we  sud- 
denly find  ourselves,  she  allowed  her  gaze  for 
a  moment  to  dwell  upon  my  face,  then  with  a 
sudden  lifting  of  her  hand,  pointed  towards  the 
door  as  if  to  bid  me  depart — when  it  swung 
open  with  that  shrill  rushing  of  wind  that  in- 
voluntarily awakes  a  shudder  within  you,  and 
the  two  men  entered  and  came  stamping  up  to 
my  side.  Instantly  her  hand  sunk,  not  feebly 
as  with  fear,  but  calmly  as  if  at  the  bidding  of 
her  will,  and  without  waiting  for  them  to  speak, 
she  turned  away  and  quietly  left  the  room.  As 
the  door  closed  upon  her  I  noticed  that  she 
wore  a  calico  frock  and  that  her  face  did  not 
own  one  perfect  feature. 

" '  Go  after  Luttra  and  tell  her  to  make  up 


Luttra.  T  55 

the  bed  in  the  northwest  room,'  said  the  elder 
of  the  two  in  deep  gutteral  tones  unmistakably 
German  in  their  accent,  to  the  other  who  stood 
shaking  the  wet  off  his  coat  into  the  lev" 
flames  of  a  small  wood  fire  that:  bu»* 
hearth  before  us. 

"  '  O,  she'll  do  without  ^  .Bering,'  was 
the  sullen  return.  '  I'm  w  ough.' 

"  The  elder  man,  a  1  powerfully  framed 
fellow  of  some  fifty  y  ^rs  or  so,  frowned.  It 
was  an  evil  frown,  and  the  younger  one  seemed 
to  feel  it.  He  immediately  tossed  his  coat  on- 
to a  chair  and  left  the  room. 

"  '  Boys  are  so  obstropolous  now-a-days,'  re- 
marked his  companion  to  me  with  what  he  evi- 
dently intended  for  a  conciliatory  nod.  '  In  my 
time  they  were  broke  in,  did  what  they  were 
told  and  asked  no  questions.' 

"  I  smiled  to  myself  at  his  calling  the  broad 
shouldered  six-footer  who  had  just  left  us  a  boy, 
but  merely  remarking,  '  He  is  your  son  is  he 
not ! '  seated  myself  before  the  blaze  which  shot 
up  a  tongue  of  white  flame  at  my  approach, 
that  irresistibly  recalled  to  my  fancy  the  appear- 
ance of  the  girl  who  had  gone  out  a  moment 
before. 


1 56  Luttra. 

"  '  O,  yes,  he  is  my  son,  and  that  girl  you 
saw  here  was  my  daughter ;  I  keep  this  inn 
and  they  help  me,  but  it  is  a  slow  way  to  live, 
I  can  tell  you.  Travel  on  these  roads  is  slim.' 

"  '  I  should  think  likely,'  I  returned,  remem- 
bering the  half  dozen  or  so  hills  up  which  I  had 
clambered  since  I  took  to  my  horse.  '  How  far 
are  we  from  Pentonville  ?  ' 

"  '  O,  two  or  three  miles,'  he  replied,  but  in  a 
hurried  kind  of  a  way.  '  Not  far  in  the  daytime 
but  a  regular  journey  in  a  night  like  this  ?  ' 

" '  Yes,'  said  I,  as  the  house  shook  under  a 
fresh  gust ;  '  it  is  fortunate  I  have  a  place  in 
which  to  put  up.' 

"He  glanced  down  at  my  baggage  which 
consisted  of  a  small  hand  bag,  an  over-coat  and 
a  fishing  pole,  with  something  like  a  gleam  of 
disappointment. 

"  '  Going  fishing  ?  '  he  asked. 

"  '  Yes,'  I  returned. 

"  '  Good  trout  up  those  streams  and  plenty  of 
them,'  he  went  on.  '  Going  alone  ?  ' 

"  I  did  not  half  like  his  importunity,  but  con- 
sidering I  had  nothing  better  to  do,  replied  as 
affably  as  possible.  '  No,  I  expect  to  meet  a 
friend  in  Pentonville  who  will  accompany  me.* 


Luttra.  167 

*  His  hand  went  to  his  beard  in  a  thoughtful 
attitude  and  he  cast  me  what,  with  my  increased 
experience  of  the  world,  I  should  now  consider 
a  sinister  glance.  '  Then  you  are  expected  ?  ' 
said  he. 

"  Not  considering  this  worth  reply,  I  stretch- 
ed out  my  feet  to  the  blaze  and  began  to  warm 
them,  for  I  felt  chilled  through. 

"  '  Been  on  the  road  long  ?  '  he  now  asked, 
glancing  at  the  blue  flannel  suit  I  wore. 

"  '  All  summer,'  I  returned, 

"  I  again  thought  he  looked  disappointed. 

"  '  From  Troy  or  New  York  ?  '  he  went  on 
with  a  vague  endeavor  to  appear  good  naturally 
off  hand. 

'"  New  York.' 

"  '  A  big  place  that,'  he  continued.  *  I  was 
there  once,  lots  of  money  stored  away  in  them 
big  buildings  down  in  Wall  Street,  eh  ?  ' 

"  I  assented,  and  he  drew  a  chair  up  to  my 
side,  a  proceeding  that  was  interrupted,  how- 
ever, by  the  reentrance  of  his  son,  who  without 
any  apology  crowded  into  the  other  side  of  the 
fire-place  in  a  way  to  sandwich  me  between 
them.  Not  fancying  this  arrangement  which  I, 


1 58  Luttra. 

however,  imputed  to  ignorance,  I  drew  back 
and  asked  if  my  room  was  ready.  It  seemed  it 
was  not,  and  unpleasantly  as  it  promised,  I  felt 
forced  to  reseat  myself  and  join  in,  if  not  sup- 
port, the  conversation  that  followed. 

"  A  half  hour  passed  away,  during  which  the 
wind  increased  till  it  almost  amounted  to  a  gale. 
Spurts  of  rain  dashed  against  the  windows  with 
a  sharp  crackling  sound  that  suggested  hail, 
while  ever  and  anon  a  distant  roll  as  of  rousing 
thunder,  rumbled  away  among  the  hills  in  a  long 
and  reverberating  peal,  that  made  me  feel  glad 
to  be  housed  even  under  the  roof  of  these  rude 
and  uncongenial  creatures.  Suddenly  the  con- 
versation turned  upon  the  time  and  time-pieces, 
when  in  a  low  even  tone  I  heard  murmured 
behind  me, 

" '  The  gentleman's  room  is  ready  ;  '  and 
turning,  I  saw  standing  in  the  doorway  the 
slight  figure  of  the  young  girl  whose  appear- 
ance had  previously  so  impressed  me. 

"  I  immediately  arose.  '  Then  I  will  proceed 
to  it  at  once,'  said  I,  taking  up  my  traps  and  ad- 
vancing towards  her. 

"  '  Do  not  be  alarmed  if  VQU  hear  creaks  and 


Luttra.  i  Sp 

cracklings  all  over  the  house,'  observed  the 
landlord  as  I  departed.  '  The  windows  are 
loose  and  the  doors  ill-fitting.  In  such  a  storm 
as  this  they  make  noise  enough  to  keep  an 
army  awake.  The  house  is  safe  enough  though 
and  if  you  don't  mind  noise — ' 

"  '  O  I  don't  mind  noise,'  rejoined  I,  feeling 
at  that  moment  tired  enough  to  fall  into  a  doze 
on  the  staircase.  '  I  shall  sleep,  never  fear,' 
and  without  further  ado  followed  the  girl  up- 
stairs into  a  large  clumsily  furnished  room 
whose  enormous  bed  draped  with  heavy  cur- 
tains at  once  attracted  my  attention. 

"  '  O  I  cannot  sleep  under  those  things/  re- 
marked I,  with  a  gesture  towards  the  dismal 
draperies  which  to  me  were  another  name  for 
suffocation. 

"  With  a  single  arm-sweep  she  threw  them 
back.  '  Is  there  anything  more  I  can  do  for 
you  ? '  asked  she,  glancing  hastily  about  the 
room. 

"  I  thanked  her  and  said  '  no,'  at  which  she 
at  once  departed  with  a  look  of  still  determina- 
tion upon  her  countenance  that  I  found  it  hard 
to  explain. 


160  Luttra. 

Left  alone  in  that  large,  bare  and  dimly 
lighted  room,  with  the  wind  shrieking  in  the 
chimney  and  the  powerful  limbs  of  some  huge 
tree  beating  against  the  walls  without,  with  a 
heavy  thud  inexpressibly  mournful,  I  found  to 
my  surprise  and  something  like  dismay,  that 
the  sleepiness  which  had  hitherto  oppressed  me, 
thad  in  some  unaccountable  way  entirely  fled. 
In  vain  I  contemplated  the  bed,  comfortable 
enough  now  in  its  appearance  that  the  stifling 
curtains  were  withdrawn  ;  no  temptation  to  in- 
vade it  came  to  arouse  me  from  the  chair  into 
which  1  had  thrown  myself.  It  was  as  if  I  felt 
myself  under  the  spell  of  some  invisible  influ- 
ence that  like  the  eye  of  a  basilisk,  held  me 
enchained.  I  remember  turning  my  head  to- 
wards a  certain  quarter  of  the  wall  as  if  I  half 
expected  to  encounter  there  the  bewildering 
glance  of  a  serpent.  Yet  far  from  being  ap- 
prehensive of  any  danger,  I  only  wondered 
over  the  weakness  of  mind  that  made  such 
fancies  possible. 

"  An  extra  loud  swirl  of  the  foliage  without, 
accompanied  by  a  quick  vibration  of  the  house, 
aroused  me  at  last.  If  I  was  to  lose  the  sense 


Luttra.  161 

of  this  furious  storm  careering  over  my  head,  I 
must  court  sleep  at  once.  Rising,  I  drew  oft 
my  coat,  unloosened  my  vest  and  was  about  to 
throw  it  off,  when  I  bethought  me  of  a  certain 
wallet  it  contained.  Going  to  the  door  in  some 
unconscious  impulse  of  precaution  I  suppose,  I 
locked  myself  in,  and  then  drawing  out  my 
wallet,  took  from  it  a  roll  of  bills  which  I  put 
into  a  small  side  pocket,  returning  the  wallet 
to  its  old  place. 

"  Why  I  did  this  I  can  scarcely  say.  As  I 
have  before  intimated,  I  was  under  no  special 
apprehension.  I  was  at  that  time  anything  but 
a  suspicious  man,  and  the  manner  and  appear- 
ance of  the  men  below  struck  me  as  unpleas- 
antly disagreeable  but  nothing  more.  But  I 
not  only  did  what  I  have  related,  but  allowed 
the  lamp  to  remain  lighted,  lying  down  finally 
in  my  clothes  ;  an  almost  unprecedented  act  on 
my  part,  warranted  however  as  I  said  to  myself, 
by  the  fury  of  the  gale  which  at  that  time 
seemed  as  if  it  would  tumble  the  roof  over  our 
heads. 

"  How  long  I  lay  listening  to  the  creakings 
and  groanings  of  the  rickety  old  house,  I  can- 


1 62  Luttra. 

not  say,  nor  how  long  I  remained  in  the  doze 
which  finally  seized  me  as  I  became  accustomed 
to  the  sounds  around  and  over  me.  Enough 
that  before  the  storm  had  passed  its  height,  I 
awoke  as  if  at  the  touch  of  a  hand,  and  leaping 
with  a  bound  out  of  the  bed,  beheld  to  my  in- 
credible amazememt,  the  alert,  nervous  form  of 
Luttra  standing  before  me.  She  had  my  coat 
in  her  hand,  and  it  was  her  touch  that  had  evi- 
dently awakened  me. 

"  '  I  want  you  to  put  this  on,'  said  she  in  a  low 
thrilling  tone  totally  new  in  my  experience, 
'  and  come  with  me.  The  house  is  unsafe  for 
you  to  remain  in.  Hear  how  it  cracks  and 
trembles.  Another  blast  like  that  and  we  shall 
be  roofless.' 

"  She  was  moving  toward  the  door,  which  to 
my  amazement  stood  ajar,  but  my  hesitation 
stopped  her. 

"  '  Won't  you  come  ?'  she  whispered,  turning 
her  face  towards  me  with  a  look  of  such  potent 
determination,  I  followed  in  spite  of  myself.  '  I 
dare  not  let  you  stay  here,  your  blood  will  be 
upon  my  head.' 

" '  You  exaggerate,'  I  replied,  shrinking  back 


Luttra.  163 

with  a  longing  look  at  the  comfortable  bed  1 
had  just  left.  '  These  old  houses  are  always 
strong.  It  will  take  many  such  a  gust  as  that 
you  hear,  to  overturn  it,  I  assure  you/ 

"'  /exaggerate! '  she  returned  with  a  look 
of  scorn  impossible  to  describe.  '  Hark  ! '  she 
said,  '  hear  that.' 

"  I  did  hear,  and  I  must  acknowledge  that  it 
seemed  is  if  we  were  about  to  be  swept  from 
our  foundations. 

"  '  Yes,'  said  I,  'but  it  is  a  fearful  night  to  be 
out  in.' 

"  •  I  shall  go  with  you,'  said  she. 

"*  In  that  case—  '  I  began  with  an  ill-advised 
attempt  at  gallantry  which  she  cut  short  with 
a  gesture. 

"  '  Here  is  your  hat,'  remarked  she,  '  and  here 
is  your  bag.  The  fishing-pole  must  remain, 
you  cannot  carry  it.' 

"  '  But, — '  I  expostulated. 

" '  Hush ! '  said  she  with  her  ear  turned 
towards  the  depths  of  the  staircase  at  the  top  of 
which  we  stood.  '  My  father  and  brother  will 
think  as  you  do  that  it  is  folly  to  leave  the 
shelter  of  a  roof  for  the  uncertainties  of  the  road 


j  64  Luttra. 

on  such  a  night  as  this,  but  you  must  not  heed 
them.  I  tell  you  shelter  this  night  is  danger, 
and  that  the  only  safety  to  be  found  is  on  the 
stormy  highway.' 

"  And  without  waiting  for  my  reply,  she 
passed  rapidly  down  stairs,  pushed  open  a  door 
at  the  bottom,  and  stepped  at  once  into  the 
room  we  had  left  an  hour  or  so  before. 

"  What  was  there  in  that  room  that  for  the 
first  time  struck  an  ominous  chill  as  of  distinct 
peril  through  my  veins  ?  Nothing  at  first  sight, 
everything  at  the  second.  The  fire  which  had 
not  been  allowed  to  die  out,  still  burned  brightly 
on  the  ruddy  hearthstone,  but  it  was  not  that 
which  awakened  my  apprehension.  Nor  was 
it  the  loud  ticking  clock  on  the  mantlepiece 
with  its  hand  pointing  silently  to  the  hour 
of  eleven.  Nor  yet  the  heavy  quiet  of  the 
scantily-furnished  room  with  its  one  lamp  burn- 
ing on  the  deal  table  against  the  side  of  the 
wall.  It  was  the  sight  of  those  two  powerful 
men  drawn  up  in  grim  silence,  the  one  against 
the  door  leading  to  the  front  hall,  the  other 
against  that  opening  into  the  kitchen. 

"  A  glance  at  Luttra  standing  silent  and  un- 


Luttra.  1 65 

dismayed  at  my  side,  however,  instantly  reas- 
sured me.  With  that  will  exercised  in  my 
favor,  I  could  not  but  win  through  whatever 
it  was  that  menaced  me.  Slinging  my  bag 
over  my  shoulder,  I  made  a  move  towards  the 
door  and  the  silent  figure  of  my  host.  But 
with  a  quick  outreaching  of  her  hand,  she 
drew  me  back. 

"  '  Stand  still ! '  said  she.  '  Karl,'  she  went  on, 
turning  her  face  towards  the  more  sullen  but  less 
intent  countenance  of  her  brother,  '  open  the 
door  and  let  this  gentleman  pass.  He  finds  the 
house  unsafe  in  such  a  gale  and  desires  to  leave 
it.  At  once ! '  she  continued  as  her  brother 
settled  himself  more  determinedly  against  the 
lock  :  '  I  don't  often  ask  favors.' 

"  '  The  man  is  a  fool  that  wants  to  go  out  in 
a  night  like  this,'  quoth  the  fellow  with  a  dog- 
ged move  ;  '  and  so  are  you  to  encourage  it. 
I  think  too  much  of  your  health  to  allow  it.' 

"  She  did  not  seem  to  hear.  'Will  you  open 
the  door  ? '  she  went  on,  not  advancing  a  step 
from  the  fire,  before  which  she  had  placed  her- 
self  and  me.' 

" «  No,  I   won't/  was  the  brutal  reply.     4  Its 


1 66  Luttra. 

been  locked  for  the  night  and  its  not  me  nor 
one  like  me,  that  will  open  it.' 

"  With  a  sudden  whitening  of  her  already 
pale  face,  she  turned  towards  her  father.  He 
was  not  even  looking  at  her. 

"  '  Some  one  must  open  the  house,'  said  she, 
glancing  back  at  her  brother.  '  This  gentleman 
purposes  to  leave  and  his  whim  must  be  hu- 
mored. Will  you  unlock  that  door  or  shall  I  ? ' 

"An  angry  snarl  interrupted  her.  Her  father 
had  bounded  from  the  door  where  he  stood  and 
was  striding  hastily  towards  her.  In  my  ap- 
prehension I  put  up  my  arm  for  a  shield,  for  he 
looked  ready  to  murder  her,  but  I  let  it  drop 
again  as  I  caught  her  glance  which  was  like 
white  flame  undisturbed  by  the  least  breeze  of 
personal  terror. 

"  '  You  will  stop  there,'  said  she,  pointing  to 
a  spot  a  few  feet  from  where  she  stood.  '  An- 
other step  and  I  let  that  for  which  I  have 
heard  you  declare  you  would  peril  your  very 
soul,  fall  into  the  heart  of  the  flames.'  And 
drawing  from  her  breast  a  roll  of  bills,  she 
stretched  them  out  above  the  fire  before  which 
she  was  standing. 


Luttra.  167 

"  '  You  '  broke  from  the  gray-bearded 

lips  of  the  old  man,  but  he  stopped  where  he 
was,  eyeing  those  bills  as  if  fascinated. 

"  '  I  am  not  a  girl  of  many  words,  as  you 
know,'  continued  she  in  a  lofty  tone  inexpres- 
sibly commanding.  '  You  may  strangle  me, 
you  may  kill  me,  it  matters  little  ;  but  this 
gentleman  leaves  the  house  this  night,  or  I 
destroy  the  money  with  a  gesture.' 

"  '  You '  again  broke  from  those  quiver- 
ing lips,  but  the  old  man  did  not  move. 

"  Not  so  the  younger.  With  a  rush  he  left 
his  post  and  in  another  instant  would  have  had 
his  powerful  arms  about  her  slender  form,  only 
that  I  met  him  half  way  with  a  blow  that  laid 
him  on  the  floor  at  her  feet.  She  said  nothing, 
but  one  of  the  bills  immediately  left  her  hand 
and  fluttered  into  the  fire  where  it  instantly 
shrivelled  into  jiothing. 

"  With  the  yell  of  a  mad  beast  wounded  in 
his  most  vulnerable  spot,  the  old  man  before  us 
stamped  with  his  heel  upon  the  floor. 

"  '  Stop  !  '  cried  he  ;  and  going  rapidly  to  the 
front  door  he  opened  it.  '  There  !  '  shrieked 
he,  '  if  you  will  be  fools,  go !  and  may  the 


1 68  Luttra. 

lightning  blast  you.  But  first  give  me  the 
money.' 

"  '  Come  from  the  door/  said  she,  reaching 
out  her  left  hand  for  the  lantern  hanging  at  the 
side  of  the  fireplace,  '  and  let  Karl  light  this 
and  keep  himself  out  of  the  way.' 

"  It  was  all  done.  In  less  time  than  I  can 
tell  it,  the  old  man  had  stepped  from  the  door, 
the  younger  one  had  lit  the  lantern  and  we 
were  in  readiness  to  depart. 

"  '  Now  do  you  proceed,'  said  she  to  me, 
'  I  will  follow.' 

"  '  No,'  said  I,  '  we  will  go  together.' 

"  *  But  the  money  ? '  growled  the  heavy  voice 
of  my  host  over  my  shoulder. 

"  '  I  will  give  it  to  you  on  my  return,'  said 
the  girl. 


CHAPTER  XII. 
A  WOMAN'S  LOVE. 

M  OH  ALL  I  ever  forget  the  blast  of  driving 
*--J  rain  that  struck  our  faces  and  enveloped 
us  in  a  cloud  of  wet,  as  the  door  swung  on  its 
hinges  and  let  us  forth  into  the  night ;  or  the 
electric  thrill  that  shot  through  me  as  that 
slender  girl  grasped  my  hand  and  drew  me 
away  through  the  blinding  darkness.  It  was 
not  that  I  was  so  much  affected  by  her  beauty 
as  influenced  by  her  power  and  energy.  The 
fury  of  the  gale  seemed  to  bend  to  her  will,  the 
wind  lend  wings  to  her  feet.  I  began  to  realize 
what  intellect  was.  Arrived  at  the  roadside, 
she  paused  and  looked  back.  The  two  burly 
forms  of  the  men  we  had  left  behind  us  were 
standing  in  the  door  of  the  inn  ;  in  another  mo- 
ment they  had  plunged  forth  and  towards  us. 
With  a  low  cry  the  young  girl  leaped  towards 


170  A    Woman  s  Love. 

a  tree  where  to  my  unbounded  astonishment 
I  beheld  my  horse  standing  ready  saddled. 
Dragging  the  mare  from  her  fastenings,  she 
hung  the  lantern,  burning  as  it  was,  on  the 
pommel  of  the  saddle,  struck  the  panting  creat- 
ure a  smart  blow  upon  the  flank,  and  drew  back 
with  a  leap  to  my  side. 

"  The  startled  horse  snorted,  gave  a  plunge 
of  dismay  and  started  away  from  us  down  the 
road. 

"  '  We  will  wait,'  said  Luttra. 

"  The  words  were  no  sooner  out  of  her  mouth 
than  her  father  and  brother  rushed  by. 

" '  They  will  follow  the  light,'  whispered  she  ; 
and  seizing  me  again  by  the  hand,  she  hurried 
me  away  in  the  direction  opposite  to  that  which 
the  horse  had  taken.  '  If  you  will  trust  me,  I 
will  bring  you  to  shelter,'  she  murmured,  bend- 
ing her  slight  form  to  the  gusty  wind  but  relax- 
ing not  a  whit  of  her  speed. 

"  '  You  are  too  kind,'  I  murmured  in  return. 
4  Why  should  you  expose  yourself  to  such  an 
extent  for  a  stranger  ?  ' 

"  Her  hand  tightened  on  mine,  but  she  did 
not  reply,  and  we  hastened  on  as  speedily  as 


A   Woman  s  Love.  171 

the  wind  and  rain  would  allow.  After  a  short 
but  determined  breasting  of  the  storm,  during 
which  my  breath  had  nearly  failed  me,  she  sud- 
denly stopped. 

"'Do  you  know/  she  exclaimed  in  a  IOAV 
impressive  tone,  '  that  we  are  on  the  verge  of  a 
steep  and  dreadful  precipice  ?  It  runs  along 
here  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  and  it  is  not  an 
uncommon  thing  for  a  horse  and  rider  to  be 
dashed  over  it  in  a  night  like  this.' 

"There  was  something  in  her  manner  that 
awakened  a  chill  in  my  veins  almost  as  if  she 
had  pointed  out  some  dreadful  doom  which  I 
had  unwittingly  escaped. 

"'This  is,  then,  a  dangerous  road,'  I  mur- 
mured. 

" '  Very,'  was  her  hurried  and  almost  inco- 
herent reply. 

"  How  far  we  travelled  through  the  mud  and 
tangled  grasses  of  that  horrible  road  I  do  not 
know.  It  seemed  a  long  distance ;  it  was 
probably  not  more  than  three  quarters  of  a 
mile.  At  last  she  paused  with  a  short  '  Here 
we  are  ; '  and  looking  up,  I  saw  that  we  were  in 
front  of  a  small  unlighted  cottage. 


172  A    Woman  s  Love. 

"  No  refuge  ever  appeared  more  welcome  to 
a  pair  of  sinking  wanderers  I  am  sure.  Wet  to 
the  skin,  bedrabbled  with  mud,  exhausted  with 
breasting  the  gale,  we  stood  for  a  moment 
under  the  porch  to  regain  our  breath,  then 
with  her  characteristic  energy  she  lifted  the 
knocker  and  struck  a  smart  blow  on  the  door. 

"  '  We  will  find  shelter  here,'  said  she. 

"  She  was  not  mistaken.  In  a  few  moments 
we  were  standing  once  more  before  a  comforta- 
able  fire  hastily  built  by  the  worthy  couple 
whose  slumbers  we  had  thus  interrupted.  As 
I  began  to  realize  the  sweetness  of  conscious 
safety,  all  that  this  young,  heroic  creature  had 
done  for  me  swept  warmly  across  my  mind. 
Looking  up  from  the  fire  that  was  begining  to 
infuse  its  heat  through  my  grateful  system,  I 
surveyed  her  as  she  slowly  undid  her  long 
braids  and  shook  them  dry  over  the  blaze,  and 
almost  started  to  see  how  young  she  was.  Not 
more  than  sixteen  I  should  say,  and  yet  what 
an  invincible  will  shone  from  her  dark  eyes  and 
dignified  her  slender  form ;  a  will  gentle  as 
it  was  strong,  elevated  as  it  was  unbending. 
I  bowed  my  head  as  I  watched  her,  in  grate- 


A    Woman  s   Love.  173 

ful    thankfulness    which    I    presently    put    into 
words. 

"  At  once  she  drew  herself  erect.  '  I  did  but 
my  duty,'  said  she  quietly.  '  I  am  glad  I  was 
prospered  in  it.'  Then  slowly.  '  If  you  are 
grateful,  sir,  will  you  promise  to  say  nothing 
of — of  what  took  place  at  the  inn  ?  ' 

"  Instantly  I  remembered  a  suspicion  which 
had  crossed  my  mind  while  there,  and  my  hand 
went  involuntarily  to  my  vest  pocket.  The 
roll  of  bills  was  gone. 

"  She  did  not  falter.  '  I  would  be  relieved  if 
you  would,'  continued  she. 

"  I  drew  out  my  empty  hand,  looked  at  it, 
but  said  nothing. 

" '  Have  you  lost  anything  ?  '  asked  she. 
'  Search  in  your  overcoat  pockets.' 

"  I  plunged  my  hand  into  the  one  nearest 
her  and  drew  it  out  with  satisfaction  ;  the  roll 
of  bills  was  there.  '  I  give  you  my  promise,' 
said  I. 

"  '  You  will  find  a  bill  missing,'  she  mur- 
mured ;  '  for  what  amount  I  do  not  know  ;  the 
sacrifice  of  something  was  inevitable.' 

"  '  I  can  only  wonder  over  the  ingenuity  you 
displayed,  as  well  as  express  my  appreciation 


1 74  -A    Woman  s  Love. 

for  your  bravery,'  returned  I  with  enthusiasm. 
'  You  are  a  noble  girl.' 

"  She  put  out  her  hand  as  if  compliments  hurt 
her.  '  It  is  the  first  time  they  have  ever  at- 
tempted anything  like  that,'  cried  she  in  a  quick 
low  tone  full  of  shame  and  suffering.  '  They 
have  shown  a  disposition  to — to  take  money 
sometimes,  but  they  never  threatened  life  be- 
fore. And  they  did  threaten  yours.  They 
saw  you  take  out  your  money,  through  a  hole 
pierced  in  the  wall  of  the  room  you  oc- 
cupied, and  the  sight  made  them  mad.  They 
were  going  to  kill  you  and  then  tumble  you 
and  your  horse  over  the  precipice  below  there. 
But  I  overheard  them  talking  and  when  they 
went  out  to  saddle  the  horse,  I  hurried  up  to 
your  room  to  wake  you.  I  had  to  take  pos- 
session of  the  bills  ;  you  were  not  safe  while 
you  held  them.  I  took  them  quietly  because 
I  hoped  to  save  you  without  betraying  them. 
But  I  failed  in  that.  You  must  remember  they 
are  my  father  and  my  brother.' 

"  '  I  will  not  betray  them,'  said  I. 

"  She  smiled.  It  was  a  wintry  gleam  but  it 
ineffably  softened  her  face.  I  became  conscious 
of  a  movement  of  pity  towards  her. 


A    Woman  s  Love.  17$ 

"  '  You  have  a  hard  lot,'  remarked  I.  *  Your 
life  must  be  a  sad  one.' 

"  She   flashed   upon   me   one  glance    of  her 
dark  eye.     '  I  was  born  for  hardship,'  said  she, 
but—  '  and  a  sudden  wild  shudder  seized  her, 
'  but  not  for  crime! 

"  The  word  fell  like  a  drop  of  blood  wrung 
from  her  heart. 

"  '  Good  heavens ! '  cried  I,  '  and  must 
you — ' 

"  '  No,'  rang  from  her  lips  in  a  clarion -like 
peal ;  '  some  things  cut  the  very  bonds  of 
nature.  I  am  not  called  upon  to  cleave  to 
what  will  drag  me  into  infamy.'  Then  calmly, 
as  if  speaking  of  the  most  ordinary  matter  in 
the  world,  '  I  shall  never  go  back  to  that  house 
we  have  left  behind  us,  sir.' 

" '  But/  cried  I,  glancing  at  her  scanty  gar- 
ments, '  where  will  you  go  ?  What  will  you 
do  ?  You  are  young — ' 

"  '  And  very  strong,'  she  interrupted.  '  Do 
not  fear  for  me.'  And  her  smile  was  like  a 
burst  of  sudden  sunshine. 

"  I  said  no  more  that  night. 

"  But  when  in  the  morning  I  stumbled  upon 


176  A    Woman  s  Love. 

her  sitting  in  the  kitchen  reading  a  book  not 
only  above  her  position  but  beyond  her  years, 
a  sudden  impulse  seized  me  and  I  asked  her  if 
she  would  like  to  be  educated.  The  instanta- 
neous illumining  of  her  whole  face  was  suf- 
ficient reply  without  her  low  emphatic  words, 

"  '  I  would  be  content  to  study  on  my  knees 
to  know  what  some  women  do,  whom  I  have 
seen.' 

"  It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  relate  with 
what  pleasure  I  caught  at  the  idea  that  here 
was  a  chance  to  repay  in  some  slight  measure 
the  inestimable  favor  she  had  done  me ;  nor  by 
what  arguments  I  finally  won  her  to  accept  an 
education  at  my  hands  as  some  sort  of  recom- 
pense for  the  life  she  had  saved.  The  advan- 
tage which  it  would  give  her  in  her  struggle 
with  the  world  she  seemed  duly  to  appreciate, 
but  that  so  great  a  favor  could  be  shown  her 
without  causing  me  much  trouble  and  an  un- 
warrantable expense,  she  could  not  at  once  be 
brought  to  comprehend,  and  till  she  could,  she 
held  out  with  that  gentle  but  inflexible  will  of 
hers.  The  battle,  however,  was  won  at  last 
and  I  left  her  in  that  little  cottage,  with  the 


A    Woman  s  Love.  177 

understanding  that  as  soon  as  the  matter  could 
be  arranged,  she  was  to  enter  a  certain  board- 
ing-school in  Troy  with  the  mistress  of  which 
I  was  acquainted.  Meanwhile  she  was  to  go 
out  to  service  at  Melville  and  earn  enough 
money  to  provide  herself  with  clothes. 

"  I  was  a  careless  fellow  in  those  days  but  I 
kept  my  promise  to  that  girl.  I  not  only  enter- 
ed her  into  that  school  for  a  course  of  three 
years,  but  acting  through  its  mistress  who  had 
taken  a  great  fancy  to  her,  supplied  her  with 
the  necessities  her  position  required.  It  was 
so  easy  ;  merely  the  signing  of  a  check  from 
time  to  time,  and  it  was  done.  I  say  this  be- 
cause I  really  think  if  it  had  involved  any  per- 
sonal sacrifice  on  my  part,  even  of  an  hour  of 
my  time,  or  the  labor  of  a  thought,  I  should  not 
have  done  it.  For  with  my  return  to  the  city 
my  interest  in  my  cousin  revived,  absorbing  me 
to  such  an  extent  that  any  matter  disconnected 
with  her  soon  lost  all  charm  for  me. 

"  Two  years  passed ;  I  was  the  slave  of 
Evelyn  Blake,  but  there  was  no  engagement 
between  us.  My  father's  determined  opposition 
was  enough  to  prevent  that.  But  there  was  an 


178  A    Woman  s  Love. 

understanding  which  I  fondly  hoped  would  one 
day  open  for  me  the  way  of  happiness.  But  I 
did  not  know  my  father.  Sick  as  he  was — he 
was  at  that  time  laboring  under  the  disease 
which  in  a  couple  of  months  later  bore  him  to 
the  tomb — he  kept  an  eye  upon  my  move- 
ments and  seemed  to  probe  my  inmost  heart. 
At  last  he  came  to  a  definite  decision  and 
spoke. 

"  His  words  opened  a  world  of  dismay  before 
me.  I  was  his  only  child,  as  he  remarked,  and 
it  had  been  and  was  the  desire  of  his  heart  to 
leave  me  as  rich  and  independent  a  man  as  him- 
self. But  I  seemed  disposed  to  commit  one  of 
those  acts  against  which  he  had  the  most  de- 
termined prejudice  ;  marriage  between  cousins 
being  in  his  eyes  an  unsanctified  and  danger- 
ous proceeding,  liable  to  consequences  the  most 
unhappy.  If  I  persisted,  he  must  will  his  prop- 
erty elsewhere.  The  Blake  estate  should  never 
descend  with  the  seal  of  his  approbation  to  a 
race  of  probable  imbeciles. 

"  Nor  was  this  enough.  He  not  only  robbed 
me  of  the  woman  I  loved,  but  with  a  clear  in- 
sight into  the  future,  I  presume,  insisted  upon 


A    Woman  s  Love.  179 

my  marrying  some  one  else  of  respectability 
and  worth  before  he  died.  'Anyone  whose  ap- 
pearance will  do  you  credit  and  whose  virtue  is 
beyond  reproach,'  said  he.  '  I  don't  ask  her  to 
be  rich  or  even  the  offspring  of  one  of  our  old 
families.  Let  her  be  good  and  pure  and  of  no 
connection  to  us,  and  I  will  bless  her  and  you 
with  my  dying  breath.' 

"  The  idea  had  seized  upon  him  with  great 
force,  and  I  soon  saw  he  was  not  to  be  shaken 
out  of  it.  To  all  my  objections  he  returned  but 
the  one  word, 

"  '  I  don't  restrict  your  choice  and  I  give  you 
a  month  in  which  to  make  it.  If  at  the  end  of 
that  time  you  cannot  bring  your  bride  to  my 
bedside,  I  must  look  around  for  an  heir  who 
will  not  thwart  my  dying  wishes.'  ' 

"  A  month  !  I  surveyed  the  fashionable 
belles  that  nightly  thronged  the  parlors  of  my 
friends  and  felt  my  heart  sink  within  me.  Take 
one  of  them  for  my  wife,  loving  another 
woman  ?  Impossible.  Women  like  these  de- 
manded something  in  return  for  the  honor  they 
conferred  upon  a  man  by  marrying  him. 
Wealth  ?  they  had  it,  Position  ?  that  was 


I  So  A    Woman  s  Love. 

theirs  also.  Consideration  ?  ah,  what  consider- 
ation had  I  to  give  ?  I  turned  from  them  with 
distaste. 

"  My  cousin  Evelyn  gave  me  no  help.  She 
was  a  proud  woman  and  loved  my  money  and 
my  expectations  as  much  as  she  did  me. 

" '  If  you  must  marry  another  woman  to  re- 
tain your  wealth,  marry,"  said  she,  '  but  do  not 
marry  one  of  my  associates.  I  will  have  no 
rival  in  my  own  empire  ;  your  wife  must  be  a 
plainer  and  a  less  aspiring  woman  than  Evelyn 
Blake.  Yet  do  not  discredit  your  name, — 
which  is  mine,'  she  would  always  add. 

"  Meanwhile  the  days  flew  by.  If  my  own 
conscience  had  allowed  me  to  forget  the  fact,  my 
father's  eagerly  inquiring,  but  sternly  unrelent- 
ing gaze  as  I  came  each  evening  to  his  bedside, 
would  have  kept  it  sufficiently  in  my  mind.  I 
began  to  feel  like  one  in  the  power  of  some 
huge  crushing  machine  whose  slowly  descend- 
ing weight  he  in  vain  endeavors  to  escape. 

"  How  or  when  the  thought  of  Luttra  first 
crossed  my  mind  I  cannot  say.  At  first  I  re- 
coiled at  the  suggestion  and  put  it  away  from 
me  in  disdain  ;  but  it  ever  recurred  and  with  it 


A    Woman  s  Love.  181 

so  many  arguments  in  her  favor  that  before 
long  I  found  myself  regarding  it  as  a  refuge. 
To  be  sure  she  was  a  waif  and  a  stray, 
but  that  seemed  to  be  the  kind  of  wife  de- 
manded of  me.  She  was  allied  to  rogues  if 
not  villains,  I  knew  ;  but  then  had  she  not  cut 
all  connection  with  them,  dropped  away  from 
them,  planted  her  feet  on  new  ground  which 
they  would  never  invade  ?  I  commenced  to 
cherish  the  idea.  With  this  friendless,  grateful, 
unassuming  protegee  of  mine  for  a  wife,  I  would 
be  as  little  bound  as  might  be.  She  would  ask 
nothing,  and  I  need  give  nothing,  beyond  a 
home  and  the  common  attentions  required  of  a 
gentleman  and  a  friend.  Then  she  was  not  dis- 
agreeable, nor  was  her  beauty  of  a  type  to  sug- 
gest the  charms  of  her  I  had  lost.  None  of  the 
graces  of  the  haughty  patrician  lady  whose 
lightest  gesture  was  a  command,  would  appear 
in  this  humble  girl,  to  mock  and  constrain  me. 
No,  I  shoutd  have  a  fair  wife  and  an  obedient 
one,  but  no  vulgarized  shadow  of  Evelyn,  thank 
God,  or  of  any  of  her  fashionably  dressed  friends. 
"  Advanced  thus  far  towards  the  end,  I  went 
to  see  Luttra.  I  had  not  beheld  her  since  the 


1 82  A    Woman  s  Love. 

morning  we  parted  at  the  door  of  that  little  cot- 
tage in  Vermont,  and  her  presence  caused  me 
a  shock.  This,  the  humble  waif  with  the  ap- 
pealing grateful  eyes  I  had  expected  to  encoun- 
ter ?  this  tall  and  slender  creature  with  an  aure- 
ola of  golden  hair  about  a  face  that  it  was  an 
education  to  behold!  I  felt  a  half  movement 
of  anger  as  I  surveyed  her.  I  had  been 
cheated ;  I  had  planted  a  grape  seed  and  a 
palm  tree  had  sprung  up  in  its  place.  I  was  so 
taken  aback,  my  salute  lost  something  of  the 
benevolent  condescension  I  had  intended  to  in- 
fuse into  it.  She  seemed  to  feel  my  embarass- 
ment  and  a  half  smile  fluttered  to  her  lips.  That 
smile  decided  me.  It  was  sweet  but  above  all 
else  it  was  appealing. 

"  How  I  won  that  woman  to  marry  me  in 
ten  days  time  I  care  not  to  state.  Not  by 
holding  up  my  wealth  and  position  before  her. 
Something  restrained  me  from  that.  I  was  re- 
solved, and  perhaps  it  was  the  only  point  of 
light  in  my  conduct  at  that  time,  not  to  buy 
this  young  girl.  I  never  spoke  of  my  expecta- 
tions, I  never  alluded  to  my  present  advantages, 
yet  I  won  her. 


A    Woman  s   Love.  183 

"We  were  married,  there,  in  Troy  in  the  quiet- 
est and  most  unpretending  manner.  Why  the 
fact  has  never  transpired  I  cannot  say.  I  cer- 
tainly took  no  especial  pains  to  conceal  it  at  the 
time,  though  I  acknowledge  that  after  our  sepa- 
ration I  did  resort  to  such  measures  as  I  thought 
necessary,  to  suppress  what  had  become  gall 
and  wormwood  to  my  pride. 

"  My  first  move  after  the  ceremony  was  to 
bring  her  immediately  to  New  York  and  to  this 
house.  With  perhaps  a  pardonable  bitterness 
of  spirit,  I  had  refrained  from  any  notification 
of  my  intentions,  and  it  was  as  strangers  might 
enter  an  unprepared  dwelling,  that  we  stepped 
across  the  threshold  of  this  house  and  passed 
immediately  to  my  father's  room. 

"  '  I  can  give  you  no  wedding  and  no  honey- 
moon,' I  had  told  her.  '  My  father  is  dying 
and  demands  my  care.  From  the  altar  to  a 
death-bed  may  be  sad  for  you,  but  it  is  an  inevi- 
table condition  of  your  marriage  with  me.'  And 
she  had  accepted  her  fate  with  a  deep  unspeak- 
able smile  it  has  taken  me  long  months  of  lone- 
liness and  suffering  to  understand. 

"  '  Father,  I  bring  you  my  bride,'  were  my 


184  A    Woman  s  Love. 

first  words  to  him  as  the  door  closed  behind  us 
shutting  us  in  with  the  dread,  invisible  Presence 
that  for  so  long  a  time  had  been  relentlessly  ad- 
vancing upon  our  home. 

"  I  shall  never  forget  how  he  roused  himself 
in  his  bed,  nor  with  what  eager  eyes  he  read 
her  young  face  and  surveyed  her  slight  form 
swaying  towards  him  in  her  sudden  emotion 
like  a  flame  in  a  breeze.  Nor  while  I  live  shall 
I  lose  sight  of  the  spasm  of  uncontrollable  joy 
with  which  he  lifted  his  aged  arms  towards  her, 
nor  the  look  with  which  she  sprang  from  my  side 
and  nestled,  yes  nestled,  on  the  breast  that  never 
to  my  remembrance  had  opened  itself  to  me 
even  in  the  years  of  my  earliest  childhood.  For 
my  father  was  a  stern  man  who  believed  in  hold- 
ing love  at  arm's  length  and  measured  affection 
by  the  depth  of  awe  it  inspired. 

"  '  My  daughter! '  broke  from  his  lips,  and  he 
never  inquired  who  she  was  or  what;  no,  not 
even  when  after  a  moment  of  silence  she  raised 
her  head  and  with  a  sudden  low  cry  of  passion- 
ate longing  looked  in  his  face  and  murmured, 

"  '  I  never  had  a  father.' 

"  Sirs,  it  is  impossible  for  me   to   continue 


A    Woman  s  Lave.  i85 

without  revealing  depths  of  pride  and  bitterness 
in  my  own  nature,  from  which  I  now  shrink 
with  unspeakable  pain.  So  far  from  being 
touched  by  this  scene,  I  felt  myself  grow  hard 
under  it.  If  he  had  been  disappointed  in  my 
choice,  queried  at  it  or  even  been  simply 
pleased  at  my  obedience,  I  might  have  ac- 
cepted the  wife  I  had  won,  and  been  tolera- 
bly grateful.  But  to  love  her,  admire  her,  glory 
in  her  when  Evelyn  Blake  had  never  succeeded 
in  winning  a  glance  from  his  eyes  that  was  not  a 
public  disapprobation !  I  could  not  endure  it ; 
my  whole  being  rebelled,  and  a  movement  like 
hate  took  possession  of  me. 

"  Bidding  my  wife  to  leave  me  with  my  fath- 
ef  alone,  I  scarcely  waited  for  the  door  to  close 
upon  the  poor  young  thing  before  all  that  had 
been  seething  in  my  breast  for  a  month,  burst 
from  me  in,  the  one  cry, 

"  '  I  have  brought  you  a  daughter  as  you 
commanded  me.  Now  give  me  the  blessing 
you  promised  and  let  me  go  ;  for  I  cannot  live 
with  a  woman  I  do  not  love.' 

44  Instantly,  and  before  his  lips  could  move, 
the  door  opened  and  the  woman  I  thus  repudi- 


1 86  A    Woman  s  Love. 

ated  in  the  first  dawning  hour  of  her  young 
bliss,  stood  before  us.  My  God !  what  a  face ! 
When  I  think  of  it  now  in  the  night  season — 
when  from  dreams  that  gloomy  as  they  are,  are 
often  elysian  to  the  thoughts  which  beset  me 
in  my  waking  hours,  I  suddenly  arouse  to  see 
starting  upon  me  from  the  surrounding  shadows 
that  young  fair  brow  with  its  halo  of  golden 
tresses,  blotted,  ay  blotted  by  the  agony  that 
turned  her  that  instant  into  stone,  I  wonder  I 
did  not  take  out  the  pistol  that  lay  in  the  table 
near  which  I  stood,  and  shoot  her  lifeless  on  the 
spot  as  some  sort  of  a  compensation  for  the 
misery  I  had  caused  her.  I  say  I  wonder  now  : 
then  I  only  thought  of  braving  it  out. 

"  Straight  as  a  dart,  but  with  that  look  on  her 
face,  she  came  towards  us.  '  Did  I  hear  aright? ' 
were  the  words  that  came  from  her  lips.  '  Have, 
you  married  me,  a  woman  beneath  your  station 
as  I  now  perceive,  because  you  were  commanded 
to  do  so  ?  Have  you  not  loved  me  ?  given  me 
that  which  alone  makes  marriage  a  sacrament 
or  even  a  possibility  ?  and  must  you  leave  thic 
house  made  sacred  by  the  recumbent  form  of 
your  dying  father  if  I  remain  within  it  ?  ' 


A    Woman's  Love.  187 

"  I  saw  my  father's  stiff  and  pallid  lips  move 
silently  as  though  he  would  answer  for  me  if  he 
could,  and  summoning  up  what  courage  I  pos- 
sessed, I  told  her  that  I  deeply  regretted  she 
had  overheard  my  inconsiderate  words.  That 
I  had  never  meant  to  wound  her,  whatever  bit- 
terness lay  in  my  heart  towards  one  who  had 
thwarted  me  in  my  dearest  and  most  cherished 
hopes.  That  I  humbly  begged  her  pardon  and 
would  so  far  acknowledge  her  claim  upon  me 
as  to  promise  that  I  would  not  leave  my  home 
at  this  time,  if  it  distressed  her ;  my  desire 
being  not  to  injure  her,  only  to  protect  myself. 

"  O  the  scorn  that  mounted  to  her  brow  at 
these  weak  words.  Not  scorn  of  me,  thank 
God,  worthy  as  I  was  of  it  that  hour,  but  scorn 
of  my  slight  opinion  of  her. 

"  '  Then' I  heard  aright,'  she  murmured,  and 
waited  with  a  look  that  would  not  be  gainsaid. 

"  I  could  only  bow  my  head,  cursing  the  day 
I  was  born. 

"  '  Holman  !  Holman  ! '  came  in  agonized 
entreaty  from  the  bed,  '  you  will  not  rob  me  of 
my  daughter  now  ? 

"  Startled,  I  looked  up.  Luttra  was  half  way 
to  the  door. 


1 88  A    Woman  s  Love. 

"  l  What  are  you  going  to  do  ?  '     cried  I, 
bounding  towards  her. 

"  She  stopped  me  with  a  look.  '  The  son 
must  never  forsake  the  father/  said  she.  '  If 
either  of  us  must  leave  the  house  this  day,  let 
it  be  I.'  Then  in  a  softer  tone,  '  When  you 
asked  me  to  be  your  wife,  I  who  had  worship- 
ped you  from  the  moment  you  entered  my 
father's  house  on  the  memorable  night  I  left  it, 
was  so  overcome  at  your  condescension  that  I 
forgot  you  did  not  preface  it  by  the  usual  pas- 
sionate, '  I  love  you,'  which  more  than  the  mar- 
riage ring  binds  two  hearts  together.  In  the 
glamour  and  glow  of  my  joy,  I  did  not  see 
that  the  smile  that  was  in  my  heart,  was  miss- 
ing from  your  face.  I  was  to  be  your  wife 
and  that  was  enough,  or  so  I  thought  then, 
for  I  loved  you.  Ah,  and  I  do  now,  my  hus- 
band, love  you  so  that  I  leave  you.  Were  it 
for  your  happiness  I  would  do  more  than  that, 
I  would  give  you  back  your  freedom,  but  from 
what  I  hear,  it  seems  that  you  need  a  wife 
in  name  and  I  will  be  but  fulfilling  your 
desire  in  holding  that  place  for  you.  I  will 
never  disgrace  the  position  high  as  it  is 


A    Woman  s  Love.  189 

above  my  poor  deserts.  When  the  day  comes 
— if  the  day  comes — that  you  need  or  feel  you 
need  the  sustainment  of  my  presence  or  the 
devotion  of  my  heart,  no  power  on  earth 
save  that  of  death  itself,  shall  keep  me  from 
your  side.  Till  that  day  arrives  I  remain  what 
you  have  made  me,  a  bride  who  lays  no  claim 
to  the  name  you  this  morning  bestowed  upon 
her.'  And  with  a  gesture  that  was  like  a  bene- 
diction, she  turned,  and  noiselessly,  breathless- 
ly as  a  dream  that  vanishes,  left  the  room. 

"  Sirs,  I  believe  I  uttered  a  cry  and  stumbled 
towards  her.  Some  one  in  that  room  uttered 
a  cry,  but  it  may  be  that  it  only  rose  in  my 
heart  and  that  the  one  I  heard  came  from  my 
father's  lips.  For  when  at  the  door  I  turned, 
startled  at  the  deathly  silence,  I  saw  he  had 
fainted  on  his  pillow.  I  could  not  leave  him 
so.  Calling  to  Mrs.  Daniels,  who  was  never 
far  from  my  father  in  those  days,  I  bade  her 
stop  the  lady — I  believe  I  called  her  my  wife — 
who  was  going  down  the  stairs,  and  then  rush- 
ed to  his  side.  It  took  minutes  to  revive  him. 
When  he  came  to  himself  it  was  to  ask  for  the 
creature  who  had  flashed  like  a  beacon  of  light 


igo  A    Woman  s  Love. 

upon  his  darkening  path.  I  rose  as  if  to  fetch 
her  but  before  I  could  advance  I  heard  a  voice 
say,  '  She  is  not  here,'  and  looking  up  I  saw 
Mrs.  Daniels  glide  into  the  room. 

"  '  Mrs.  Blake  has  gone,  sir,  I  could  not  keep 
her.' 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

A  MAN'S   HEART. 

THAT  was  the  last  time  my  eyes  ever 
rested  upon  my  wife.  Whither  she 
went  or  what  refuge  she  gained,  I  never  knew. 
My  father  who  had  received  in  this  scene  a  great 
shock,  began  to  fail  so  rapidly,  he  demanded 
my  constant  care  ;  and  though  from  time  to 
time  as  I  ministered  to  him  and  noted  with 
what  a  yearning  persistency  he  would  eye  the 
door  and  then  turn  and  meet  my  gaze  with  a  look 
I  could  not  understand,  I  caught  myself  asking 
whether  I  had  done  a  deed  destined  to  hang 
forever  about  me  like  a  pall ;  it  was  not  till 
after  his  death  that  the  despairing  image  of  the 
bright  young  creature  to  whom  I  had  given  my 
name,  returned  with  any  startling  distinctness 
to  my  mind,  or  that  I  allowed  myself  to  ask 
whether  the  heavy  gloom  which  I  now  felt  set- 

107 


192  A  Mans  Heart. 

tling  upon  me  was  owing  to  the  sense  of 
shame  that  overpowered  me  at  the  remem- 
brance of  the  past,  or  to  the  possible  loss  I  had 
sustained  in  the  departure  of  my  young  un- 
loved bride. 

"  The  announcement  at  this  time  of  the 
engagement  between  Evelyn  Blake  and  the 
Count  De  Mirac  may  have  had  something  to 
do  with  this.  Though  I  had  never  in  the  most 
passionate  hours  of  my  love  for  her,  lost  sight 
of  that  side  of  her  nature  which  demanded  as 
her  right  the  luxury  of  great  wealth ;  and 
though  in  my  tacit  abandonment  of  her  and 
secret  marriage  with  another  I  had  certainly 
lost  the  right  to  complain  of  her  actions  what- 
ever they  might  be,  this  manifest  surrendering 
of  herself  to  the  power  of  wealth  and  show  at 
the  price  of  all  that  women  are  believed  to  hold 
dear,  was  an  undoubted  blow  to  my  pride  and 
the  confidence  I  had  till  now  unconsciously 
reposed  in  her  inherent  womanliness  and  affec- 
tion. That  she  had  but  made  on  a  more  con- 
spicuous scale,  the  same  sacrifice  as  myself 
to  the  god  of  Wealth  and  Position,  was  in  my 
eyes  at  that  time,  no  palliation  of  her  conduct 


A  Mans   Heart.  193 

I  was  a  man  none  too  good  or  exalted  at  the 
best;  she,  a  woman,  should  have  been  superior 
to  the  temptations  that  overpowered  me,  That 
she  was  not,  seemed  to  drag  all  womanhood  a 
little  nearer  the  dust ;  fashionable  womanhood 
I  ought  to  say,  for  somehow  even  at  that  early 
day  her  conduct  did  not  seem  to  affect  the  vivid 
image  of  Luttra  standing  upon  my  threshold, 
shorn  of  her  joy  but  burning  with  a  devotion 
I  did  not  comprehend,  and  saying, 

"  '  I  loved  you.  Ah,  and  I  do  yet,  my  hus- 
band, love  you  so  that  I  leave  you.  When  the 
day  comes — if  the  day  comes — you  need  or 
feel  you  need  the  sustainment  of  my  presence 
or  the  devotion  of  my  heart,  no  power  on  earth 
save  that  of  death  itself,  shall  keep  me  from 
your  side/ 

"  Yes,  with  the  fading  away  of  other  faces 
and  other  forms,  that  face  and  that  form  now 
began  to  usurp  the  chief  place  in  my  thoughts. 
Not  to  my  relief  and  pleasure.  That  could 
scarcely  be,  remembering  all  that  had  occurred ; 
rather  to  my  increasing  distress  and  passionate 
resentment.  I  longed  to  forget  I  was  held  by  a 
tie,  that  known  to  the  world  would  cause  me 


194  -A  Mans   Heart. 

the  bitterest  shame.  For  by  this  time  the  true 
character  of  her  father  and  brother  had  been 
revealed  and  I  found  myself  bound  to  the 
daughter  of  a  convicted  criminal. 

"  But  I  could  not  forget  her.  The  look  with 
which  she  had  left  me  was  branded  into  my 
consciousness.  Night  and  day  it  floated  before 
me,  till  to  escape  it  I  resolved  to  fasten  it  upon 
canvas,  if  by  that  means  I  might  succeed  in 
eliminating  it  from  my  dreams. 

"The  painting  you  have  seen  this  night  is 
the  result.  Born  with  an  artist's  touch  and  in- 
sight that  under  other  circumstances  might, 
perhaps,  have  raised  me  into  the  cold  dry  at- 
mosphere of  fame,  the  execution  of  this  piece 
of  work,  presented  but  few  difficulties  to  my 
somewhat  accustomed  hand.  Day  by  day  her 
beauty  grew  beneath  my  brush,  startling  me 
often  with  its  spiritual  force  and  significance 
till  my  mind  grew  feverish  over  its  work, 
and  I  could  scarcely  refrain  from  rising  at  night 
to  give  a  touch  here  or  there  to  the  floating 
golden  hair  or  the  piercing,  tender  eyes  turn- 
ed, ah,  ever  turned  upon  the  inmost  citadel 
of  my  heart  with  that  look  that  slew  my  father 


A  Mans    Heart. 

before  his  time  and  made  me,  yes  me,  old  in 
spirit  even  in  the  ardent  years  of  my  first  man- 
hood. 

"  At  last  it  was  finished  and  she  stood  before 
me  life-like  and  real  in  the  very  garments  and 
with  almost  the  very  aspect  of  that  never  to  be 
forgotten  moment.  Even  the  roses  which  in 
the  secret  uneasiness  of  my  conscience  I  had 
put  in  her  hand  on  our  departure  from  Troy, 
as  a  sort  of  visible  token  that  I  regarded  her 
as  my  bride,  and  which  through  all  her  inter- 
view with  my  father  she  had  never  dropped, 
blossome4  before  me  on  the  canvas.  Nothing 
that  could  give  reality  to  the  likeness,  was  lack- 
ing ;  the  vision  of  my  dreams  stood  embodied 
in  my  sight,  and  I  looked  for  peace.  Alas,  that 
picture  now  became  my  dream. 

"  Inserting  it  behind  that  of  Evelyn  which  for 
two  years  had  held  its  place  above  my  arm- 
chair, I  turned  its  face  to  the  wall  when  I  rose 
in  the  morning.  But  at  night  it  beamed  ever 
upon  me,  becoming  as  the  months  passed,  the 
one  thing  to  hold  to  and  muse  over  when  the 
world  grew  a  little  noisy  in  my  ears  and  the 
never  ceasing  conflict  of  the  ages  beat  a  trifle 
too  loudly  on  heart  and  brain. 


196  A  Mans   Heart. 

"  Meanwhile  no  word  of  her,  only  of  her  vil- 
lainous father  and  brother ;  no  token  that  she 
had  escaped  evil  or  was  removed  from  want. 
If  I  had  loved  her  I  could  not  have  succored 
her,  for  I  did  not  know  where  to  find  her.  Her 
countenance  illumined  my  wall,  but  her  fair 
young  self  lay  for  all  I  knew  sheltered  within 
the  darkness  and  silence  of  the  tomb. 

"  At  length  my  morbid  breedings  worked 
out  their  natural  result.  A  dull  melancholy 
settled  upon  me  which  nothing  could  break. 
Even  the  news  that  my  cousin  who  had  lost  her 
husband  a  month  after  marriage,  had  returned 
to  America  with  expectation  to  remain,  scarcely 
caused  a  ripple  in  my  apathy.  Was  I  sinking 
into  a  hypochrondriac  ?  or  was  my  passion  for 
the  beautiful  brunette  dead  ?  I  determined  to 
solve  the  doubt. 

"  Seeking  her  where  I  knew  she  would  be 
found,  I  gazed  again  upon  her  beauty.  It  was 
absolutely  nothing  to  me.  A  fair  young  face 
with  high  thoughts  in  every  glance  floated  like 
sunshine  between  us  and  I  left  the  haughty 
Countess,  with  the  knowledge  burned  deep  into 
my  brain,  that  the  love  I  had  considered  slain 


A  Mans   Heart.  197 

was  alive  and  demanding,  but  that  the  object  of 
it  past  recall,  was  my  lost  young  wife. 

"  Once  assured  of  this,  my  apathy  vanish- 
ed like  mist  before  a  kindled  torch.     Hence- 
forth the  future  held  a  hope,  and  life  a  purpose. 
I  would  seek  my  wife  throughout  the  world  and 
bring  her  back  if  I  found  her  in  prison  between 
the  men  whose  existence  was  a  curse  to  my 
pride.     But   where   should    I    turn    my  steps  ? 
What  golden  thread  had  she  left  in  my  hand 
by  which  to  trace  her  through  the  labyrinth  of 
this  world?     I  could  think  of  but  one,  and  that 
was  the  love  which  would  restrain  her  from  go- 
ing away  from  me  too  far.     The  Luttra  of  old 
would   not  leave  the   city  where  her  husband 
lived.     If  she  was  not  changed,  I  ought  to  be 
able  to  find  her  somewhere  within  this  great 
Babylon  of  ours.     Wisdom  told  me  to  set  the 
police  upon  her  track,  but  pride  bade  me  try 
every  other  means  first.     So  with  the  feverish 
energy  of  one  leading  a  forlorn  hope,  I  began 
to  pace  the  streets  if  haply  I  might  see  her  face 
shine  upon  me  from  the  crowd  of  passers  by  ; 
a  foolish  fancy,  unproductive  of  result !     I  not 
only  failed  to  see  her,  but  anyone  like  her. 


A  Mans   Heart. 

In  the  midst  of  the  despair  occasioned  by  this 
failure  a  thought  flashed  across  me  or  rather  a 
remembrance.  One  night  not  long  since,  being 
uncommonly  restless,  I  had  risen  from  my  bed, 
dressed  me  and  gone  out  into  the  yard  back  of 
my  house  for  a  little  air.  It  was  an  unusual 
thing  for  me  to  do  but  I  seemed  to  be  suffoca- 
ting where  I  was,  and  nothing  else  would  sat- 
isfy me.  As  you  already  surmise,  it  was  the 
night  on  which  disappeared  the  sewing  girl  of 
which  you  have  so  often  spoken,  but  I  knew 
nothing  of  that,  my  thoughts  were  far  from  my 
own  home  and  its  concerns.  You  may  judge 
what  a  state  of  mind  I  was  in  when  I  tell  you 
that  I  even  thought  at  one  moment  while  I 

paused  before  the  gate  leading  into Street 

that  I  saw  the  face  of  her  with  whom  my 
thoughts  were  ever  busy,  peering  upon  me 
through  the  bars. 

"  You  tell  me  that  I  did  see  a  girl  there,  and 
that  it  was  the  one  who  had  lived  as  sewing- 
woman  in  my  house  ;  it  may  be  so,  but  at  the 
time  I  considered  it  a  vision  of  my  wife,  and 
the  remembrance  of  it,  coming  as  it  did  after 
my  repeated  failures  to  encounter  her  in  the. 


A  Mans   Heart.  199 

street,  -worked  a  change  in  my  plans.  For 
regard  it  as  weakness  or  not,  the  recollection 
that  the  vision  I  had  seen  wore  the  garments 
of  a  working- woman  rather  than  a  lady,  acted 
upon  me  like  a  warning  not  to  search  for  her 
any  longer  among  the  resorts  of  the  well- 
dressed,  but  in  the  regions  of  poverty  and 
toil.  I  therefore  took  to  wanderings  such  as  I 
have  no  heart  to  describe.  Nor  do  I  need  to, 
if,  as  you  have  informed  me,  I  have  been  fol- 
lowed. < 

"  The  result  was  almost  madness.  Though 
deep  in  my  heart  I  felt  a  steadfast  trust  in  the 
purity  of  her  intentions,  the  fear  of  what  she 
might  have  been  driven  to  by  the  awful  pov- 
erty and  despair  I  every  day  saw  seething 
about  me,  was  like  hot  steel  in  brain  and  heart. 
Then  her  father  and  her  brother !  To  what 
might  they  not  have  forced  her,  innocent  and 
loving  soul  though  she  was !  Drinking  the 
dregs  of  a  cup  such  as  I  had  never  considered 
it  possible  for  me  to  taste,  I  got  so  far  as  to 
believe  that  her  eyes  would  yet  flash  upon  me 
from  beneath  some  of  the  tattered  shawls  I 
saw  sullying  the  forms  of  the  young  girls  upon 


zoo  A  Mans  Heart. 

which  I  hourly  stumbled.  Yes,  and  even 
made  a  move  to  see  my  cousin,  if  haply  I 
could  so  win  upon  her  compassion  as  to  gain 
her  consent  to  shelter  the  poor  creature  of  my 
dreams  in  case  the  necessity  came.  But  my 
heart  failed  me  at  the  sight  of  her  cold  face 
above  the  splendor  she  had  bought  with  her 
charms,  and  I  was  saved  a  humiliation  I  might 
never  have  risen  above. 

"  At  last,  one  day  I  saw  a  girl — no,  it  was 
not  she,  but  her  hair  was  similar  to  hers  in  hue, 
and  the  impulse  to  follow  her  was  irresistible. 
I  did  more  than  that,  I  spoke  to  her.  I  asked 
her  if  she  could  tell  me  anything  of  one 
whose  locks  were  golden  red  like  hers — But  I 
need  not  tell  you  what  I  said  nor  what  she  re- 
plied with  a  gentle  delicacy  that  was  almost  a 
shock  to  me  as  showing  from  what  heights  to 
what  depths  a  woman  can  fall.  Enough  that 
nothing  passed  between  us  beyond  what  I 
have  intimated,  and  that  in  all  she  said  she 
gave  me  no  news  of  Luttra. 

"  Next  day  I  started  for  the  rambling  old 
house  in  Vermont,  if  haply  in  the  spot  where 
I  first  saw  her,  I  might  come  upon  some  clue 


A  Mans    Heart.  201 

to  her  present  whereabouts.  But  the  old  inn 
was  deserted,  and  whatever  hope  I  may  have 
had  in  that  direction,  perished  with  the  rest. 

"  Concerning  the  contents  of  that  bureau- 
drawer  above,  I  can  say  nothing.  If,  as  I 
scarcely  dare  to  hope,  they  should  prove  to 
have  been  indeed  brought  here  by  the  girl  who 
has  since  disappeared  so  strangely,  who  knows 
but  what  in  those  folded  garments  a  clue  is 
given  which  will  lead  me  at  last  to  the  knowl- 
edge for  which  I  would  now  barter  all  I  pos- 
sess. My  wife — But  I  can  mention  her  name 
no  more  till  the  question  that  now  assails  us 
is  set  at  rest.  Mrs.  Daniels  must — " 

But  at  that  moment  the  door  opened  and 
Mrs.  Daniels  came  in. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

MRS.   DANIELS. 

SHE  still  wore  her  bonnet  and  shawl  and 
her  face  was  like  marble. 

"  You  want  me  ?  "  said  she  with  a  hurried 
look  towards  Mr.  Blake  that  had  as  much  fear 
as  surprise  in  it. 

"  Yes,"  murmured  that  gentleman  moving 
towards  her  with  an  effort  we  could  very  well 
appreciate.  "  Mrs.  Daniels,  who  was  the  girl 
you  harbored  in  that  room  above  us  for  so 
long  ?  Speak  ;  what  was  her  name  and  where 
did  she  come  from  ?  " 

The  housekeeper  trembling  in  every  limb, 
cast  us  one  hurried  appeal. 

"  Speak  !  "  reechoed  Mr.  Gryce  ;  "  the  time 
for  secrecy  has  passed." 

"  O,"  cried  she,  sinking  into  a  chair  from 
sheer  inability  to  stand,  "  it  was  your  wife,  Mr. 
Blake,  the  young  creature  you — " 

202 


Mrs.  Daniels. 

«  Ah !  " 

All  the  agony,  the  hopelessness,  the  love,  the 
passion  of  those  last  few  months  flashed  up  in 
that  word.  She  stopped  as  if  she  had  been 
shot,  but  seeing  the  hand  which  he  had  hur- 
riedly raised,  fall  slowly  before  him,  went  on 
with  a  burst, 

"  O  sir,  she  made  me  swear  on  my  knees  I 
would  never  betray  her,  no  matter  what  hap- 
pened. When  not  two  weeks  after  your  father 
died  she  came  to  the  house  and  asking  for  me, 
told  me  all  her  story  and  all  her  love  ;  how  she 
could  not  reconcile  it  with  her  idea  of  a  wife's 
duty  to  live  under  any  other  roof  than  that  of 
her  husband,  and  lifting  off  the  black  wig 
which  she  wore,  showed  me  how  altered  she 
had  made  herself  by  that  simple  change — in  her 
case  more  marked  by  the  fact  that  her  eyes 
were  in  keeping  with  black  hair,  while  with  her 
own  bright  locks  they  always  gave  you  a  shock 
as  of  something  strange  and  haunting — I  gave 
up  my  will  as  if  forced  by  a  magnetic  power, 
and  not  only  opened  the  house  to  her  but  my 
heart  as  well  ;  swearing  to  all  she  demanded 
and  keeping  my  oath  too,  as  I  would  preserve 


204  Mrs.  Daniels. 

my  soul  from  sin  and  my  life  from  the  knife  of 
the  destroyer." 

"  But,  when  she  went,"  broke  from  the  pallid 
lips  of  the  man  before  her,  "  when  she  was 
taken  away  from  the  house,  what  then  ?  " 

"  Ah,"  returned  the  agitated  woman,  "  what 
then  !  Do  you  not  think  I  suffered  ?  To  be 
held  by  my  oath,  an  oath  I  was  satisfied  she 
would  wish  kept  even  at  this  crisis,  yet  know- 
ing all  the  while  she  was  drifting  away  into 
some  evil  that  you,  if  you  knew  who  she  was, 
would  give  your  life  to  avert  from  your  honor, 
if  not  from  her  innocent  head !  To  see  you 
cold,  indifferent,  absorbed  in  other  things, while 
she,  who  would  have  perished  any  day  for  your 
happiness,  was  losing  her  life  perhaps  in  the 
clutches  of  those  horrible  villains !  Do  not  ask 
me  to  tell  you  what  I  have  suffered  since  she 
went ;  I  can  never  tell  you, — innocent,  tender, 
noble-hearted  creature  that  she  was." 

"  Was  ?  "  His  hand  clutched  his  heart  as  if 
it  had  been  seized  by  a  deathly  spasm.  "  Why 
do  you  say  was  f  " 

"  Because  I  have  just  come  from  the  Morgue 
where  she  lies  dead." 


Mrs.  Daniels. 

"  No,  no,"  came  in  a  low  shriek  from  his 
lips,  "  that  is  not  she  ;  that  is  another  woman, 
like  her  perhaps,  but  not  she." 

"  Would  to  God  you  were  right ;  but  the 
long  golden  braids  !  Such  hair  as  hers  I  never 
saw  on  anyone  before." 

"  Mr.  Blake  is  right,"  I  broke  in,  for  I  could 
not  endure  this  scene  any  longer.  "  The 
woman  taken  out  of  the  East  river  to-day 
has  been  both  seen  and  spoken  to  by  him  and 
that  not  long  since.  He  should  know  if  it  is 
his  wife." 

"  And  isn't  it  ?  " 

"  No,  a  thousand  times  no  ;  the  girl  was  a 
perfect  stranger." 

The  assurance  seemed  to  lift  a  leaden  weight 
from  her  heart.  "  O  thank  God,"  she  mur- 
mured dropping  with  an  irresistible  impulse 
on  her  knees.  Then  with  a  sudden  return  of 
her  old  tremble,  "  But  I  was  only  to  reveal  her 
secret  in  case  of  her  death !  What  have  I 
done,  O  what  have  I  done !  Her  only  hope 
lay  in  my  faithfulness." 

Mr.  Blake  leaning  heavily  on  the  table  before 
him,  looked  in  her  face. 


206  Mrs.  Daniels. 

"  Mrs.  Daniels,"  said  he,  "  I  love  my  wife ; 
her  hope  now  lies  in  me." 

She  leaped  to  her  feet  with  a  joyous  bound. 
"  You  love  her  ?  O  thank  God  !  "  she  again  re- 
iterated but  this  time  in  a  low  murmur  to  her- 
self. "  Thank  God  !  "  and  weeping  with  unre- 
strained joy,  she  drew  back  into  a  corner. 

Of  course  after  that,  all  that  remained  for  us 
to  do  was  to  lay  our  heads  together  and  consult 
as  to  the  best  method  of  renewing  our  search 
after  the  unhappy  girl,  now  rendered  of  double 
interest  to  us  by  the  facts  with  which  we  had 
just  been  made  acquainted.  That  she  had 
been  forced  away  from  the  roof  that  sheltered 
her  by  the  power  of  her  father  and  brother  was 
of  course  no  longer  open  to  doubt.  To  dis- 
cover them,  therefore,  meant  to  recover  her. 
Do  you  wonder,  then,  that  from  the  moment 
we  left  Mr.  Blake's  house,  the  capture  of  that 
brace  of  thieves  became  the  leading  purpose  of 
our  two  lives  ? 


CHAPTER  XV. 

A  CONFAB. 

NEXT  morning  Mr.   Gryce  and  I  met  in 
serious  consultation.     How,  and  in  what 
direction  should  we  extend  the  inquiries  neces- 
sary to  a  discovery  of  these  Schoenmakers  ? 

"  I  advise  a  thorough  overhauling  of  the  Ger- 
man quarter,"  said  my  superior.  "  Schmidt, 
and  Rosenthal  will  help  us  and  the  result  ought 
to  be  satisfactory." 

But  I  shook  my  head  at  this.  "  I  don't  be- 
lieve," said  I,  "that  they  will  hide  among  their 
own  people.  You  must  remember  they  are  not 
alone,  but  have  with  them  a  young  woman  of 
a  somewhat  distinguished  appearance,  whose 
presence  in  a  crowded  district,  like  that,  would 
be  sure  to  awaken  gossip  ;  something  which 
above  all  else  they  must  want  to  avoid." 

"  That  is  true  ;  the  Germans  are  a  dreadful 
race  for  gossip." 

207 


208  A  Confab. 

11  If  they  dared  to  ill-dress  her  or  ill-treat  her, 
it  would  be  different.  But  she  is  a  valuable 
piece  of  property  to  them  you  see,  a  choice  lot 
of  goods  which  it  is  for  their  interest  to  pre- 
serve in  first-class  condition  till  the  day  comes 
for  its  disposal.  For  I  presume  you  have  no 
doubt  that  it  is  for  the  purpose  of  extorting 
money  from  Mr.  Blake  that  they  have  carried 
off  his  young  wife." 

"  For  that  reason  or  one  similar.  He  is  a 
man  of  resources,  they  may  have  hoped  he 
would  help  them  to  escape  the  country." 

"  If  they  don't  hide  in  the  German  quarter 
they  certainly  won't  in  the  Italian,  French  or 
Irish.  What  they  want  is  too  keep  close  and 
rouse  no  questions.  I  think  they  will  be  found 
to  have  gone  up  the  river  somewhere,  or  over 
to  Jersey.  Hoboken  would 'nt  be  a  bad  place 
to  send  Schmidt  to." 

"  You  forget  what  it  is  they've  got  on  their 
minds ;  besides  no  conspicuous  party  such  as 
they  could  live  in  a  rural  district  without  at- 
tracting more  attention  than  in  the  most  crowd- 
ed tenement  house  in  the  city." 

"  Where  do  you  think,  then,  they  would  be 
liable  to  go  ?  " 


A  Confab.  209 

"  Well  my  most  matured  thought  on  the  sub- 
ject," returned  Mr.  Gryce,  after  a  moment's 
deliberation,  "  is  this, — you  say,  and  I  agree, 
that  they  have  hampered  themselves  with  this 
woman  at  this  time  for  the  purpose  of  using 
her  hereafter  in  a  scheme  of  black- mail  upon 
Mr.  Blake.  He,  then,  must  be  the  object  about 
which  their  thoughts  revolve  and  toward  which 
whatever  operations  or  plans  they  may  be  en- 
gaged upon  must  tend.  What  follows  ?  When 
a  company  of  men  have  made  up  their  minds 
to  rob  a  bank,  what  is  the  first  thing  they 
do  ?  They  hire,  if  possible,  a  house  next  to  the 
especial  building  they  intend  to  enter,  and  for 
months  work  upon  the  secret  passage  through 
which  they  hope  to  reach  the  safe  and  its  con- 
tents ;  or  they  make  friends  with  the  watch- 
man that  guards  its  treasures,  and  the  janitor 
who  opens  and  shuts  the  doors.  In  short  they 
hang  about  their  prey  before  they  pounce  upon 
it.  And  so  will  these  Schoenmakers  do  in  the 
somewhat  different  robbery  which  they  plan 
sooner  or  later  to  effect.  Whatever  may  keep 
them  close  at  this  moment,  Mr.  Blake  and  Mr. 
Blake's  house  is  the  point  toward  which  their 
eyes  are  turned,  and  if  we  had  time — •" 


2io  A   Confab. 

"  But  we  have'nt,"  I  broke  in  impetuously. 
"  It  is  horrible  to  think  of  that  grand  woman 
languishing  away  in  the  power  of  such  rascals." 

"  If  we  had  time,"  Mr.  Gryce  persisted,  "  all 
it  would  be  necessary  to  do  would  be  to  wait, 
they  would  come  into  our  hands  as  easily 
and  naturally  as  a  hawk  into  the  snare  of  the 
fowler.  But  as  you  say  we  have  not,  and  there- 
fore, I  would  recommend  a  little  beating  of  the 
bush  directly  about  Mr.  Blake's  house  ;  for  if  all 
my  experience  is  not  at  fault,  those  men  are 
already  within  eye -shot  of  the  prey  they  in- 
tend to  run  down." 

"  But,"  said  I,  "  I  have  been  living  myself  in 
that  very  neighborhood  and  know  by  this  time 
the  ways  of  every  house  in  the  vicinity.  There 
is  not  a  spot  up  and  down  the  Avenue  for  ten 
blocks  where  they  could  hide  away  for  two 
days  much  less  two  weeks.  And  as  for  the  side 
streets, — why  I  could  tell  you  the  names  of 
those  who  live  in  each  house  for  a  considerable 
distance.  Yet  if  you  say  so  I  will  go  to  work — '* 

"  Do,  and  meanwhile  Schmidt  and  Rosenthal 
shall  rummage  the  German  quarter  and  even 
go  through  Williamsburgh  and  Hoboken.  The 


A  Confab.  211 

end  justifies  any  amount  of  labor  that  can  be 
spent  upon  this  matter." 

"  And  you,"  I  asked. 

"  Will  do  my  part  when  you  have  done 
yours." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE   MARK   OF   THE   RED    CROSS, 

AND  what  success  did  I  meet?     The  best 
in  the  world.     And  by  what  means  did 
I  attain  it  ?     By  that  of  the  simplest,  prettiest 
clue  I  ever  came  upon.     But  let  me  explain. 

When  after  a  wearisome  day  spent  in  an  in- 
effectual search  through  the  neighborhood,  I 
went  home  to  my  room,  which  as  you  remem- 
ber was  a  front  one  in  a  lodging-house  on  the 
opposite  corner  from  Mr.  Blake,  I  was  so  ab- 
sorbed in  mind  and  perhaps  I  may  say  shaken 
in  nerve,  by  the  strain  under  which  I  had  been 
laboring  for  some  time  now,  that  I  stumbled  up 
an  extra  flight  of  stairs,  and  without  any  sus- 
picion of  the  fact,  tried  the  door  of  the  room 
directly  over  mine.  It  is  a  wonder  to  me  now 
that  I  couM  have  made  the  mistake,  for  the 
halls  were  totally  dissimilar,  the  one  above 

212 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          2 1 3 

being  much  more  cut  up  than  the  one  below, 
besides  being  flanked  by  a  greater  number  of 
doors.  But  the  intoxication  of  the  mind  is  not 
far  removed  from  that  of  the  body,  and  as  I  say 
it  was  not  till  I  had  tried  the  door  and  found  it 
locked,  that  I  became  aware  of  the  mistake  I 
had  made. 

With  the  foolish  sense  of  shame  that  always 
overcomes  us  at  the  committal  of  any  such 
trivial  error,  I  stumbled  hastily  back,  when  my 
foot  trod  upon  something  that  broke  under  my 
weight.  I  never  let  even  small  things  pass 
without  some  notice.  Stooping,  then,  for  what 
I  had  thus  inadvertently  crushed,  I  carried  it 
to  where  a  single  gas  jet  turned  down  very 
low,  made  a  partial  light  in  the  long  hall,  and 
examining  it,  found  it  to  be  a  piece  of  red 
chalk. 

What  was  there  in  that  simple  fact  to  make 
me  start  and  hastily  recall  one  or  two  half-for- 
gotten incidents  which,  once  brought  to  minc^ 
awoke  a  train  of  thought  that  led  to  the  dis- 
covery and  capture  of  those  two  desperate 
thieves  ?  I  will  tell  you. 

I  don't  remember  now  whether  in  my  account 


Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

of  the  visit  I  paid  to  the  Schoenmakers'  house 
in  Vermont,  I  informed  you  of  the  red  cross  I 
noticed  scrawled  on  the  panel  of  one  of  the 
doors.  It  seemed  a  trivial  thing  at  the  time 
and  made  little  or  no  impression  upon  me,  the 
chances  being  that  I  should  never  have  thought 
of  it  again,  if  I  had  not  come  upon  the  article 
just  mentioned  at  a  moment  when  my  mind 
was  full  of  those  very  Schoenmakers.  But  re- 
membered now,  together  with  another  half-for- 
gotten fact, — that  some  days  previous  I  had 
been  told  by  the  woman  who  kept  the  house  I 
was  in,  that  the  parties  over  my  head  (two  men 
and  a  woman  I  believe  she  said)  were  giving 
her  some  trouble,  but  that  they  paid  well  and 
therefore  she  did  not  like  to  turn  them  out, — it 
aroused  a  vague  suspicion  in  my  mind,  and  led 
to  my  walking  back  to  the  door  I  had  endeav- 
ored to  open  in  my  abstraction,  and  carefully 
looking  at  it. 

It  was  plain  and  white,  rather  ruder  of  make 
than  those  below,  but  offering  no  inducements 
for  prolonged  scrutiny.  But  not  so  with  the 
one  that  stood  at  right  angles  to  it  on  the  left. 
Full  in  the  centre  of  that,  I  beheld  distinctly 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          2 1 5 

scrawled,  probably  with  the  very  piece  of  chalk 
I  then  held,  a  red  cross  precisely  similar  in  out- 
line to  the  one  I  had  seen  a  few  days  before 
on  the  panel  of  the  Schoenmakers'  door  at 
Granby. 

The  discovery  sent  a  thrill  over  me  that  al- 
most raised  my  hair  on  end.  Was,  then,  this 
famous  trio  to  be  found  in  the  very  house  in 
which  I  had  been  myself  living  for  a  week  or 
more?  over  my  head  in  fact?  I  could  not  with- 
draw my  gaze  from  the  mysterious  looking 
object.  I  bent  near,  I  listened,  I  heard  what 
sounded  like  the  suppressed  snore  of  a  power- 
ful man,  and  almost  had  to  lay  hold  of  myself 
to  prevent  my  hand  from  pushing  open  that 
closed  door  and  my  feet  from  entering.  As  it 
was  I  did  finger  the  knob  a  little,  but  an  extra 
loud  snore  from  within  reminded  me  by  its  sug- 
gestion of  strength  that  I  was  but  a  small  man 
and  that  in  this  case  and  at  this  hour,  discretion 
was  the  better  part  of  valor. 

I  therefore  withdrew,  but  for  the  whole  night 
lay  awake  listening  to  catch  any  sounds  that 
might  come  from  above,  and  going  so  far  as  to 
plan  what  I  would  do  if  it  should  be  proved 


216  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

that  I  was  indeed  upon  the  trail  of  the  men  I 
was  so  anxious  to  encounter. 

With  the  breaking  of  day  I  was  upon  my 
feet.  A  rude  step  had  gone  up  the  stairs  a  few 
minutes  before  and  I  was  all  alert  to  follow. 
But  I  presently  considered  that  my  wisest 
course  would  be  to  sound  the  landlady  and 
learn  if  possible  with  what  sort  of  characters  I 
had  to  deal.  Routing  her  out  of  the  kitchen, 
where  at  that  early  hour  she  was  already  en- 
gaged in  domestic  duties,  I  drew  her  into  a  re- 
tired corner  and  put  my  questions.  She  was 
not  backward  in  replying.  She  had  conceived 
an  innocent  liking  for  me  in  the  short  time  I 
had  been  with  her — a  display  of  weakness  for 
which  I  was  myself,  perhaps,  as  much  to  blame 
as  she — and  was  only  too  ready  to  pour  out  her 
griefs  into  my  sympathizing  ear.  For  those 
men  were  a  grief  to  her,  acceptable  as  was  the 
money  they  were  careful  to  provide  her  with. 
They  were  not  only  always  in  the  house,  that 
is  one  of  them,  smoking  his  old  pipe  and  black- 
ening up  the  walls,  but  they  looked  so  shabby, 
and  kept  the  girl  so  close,  and  if  they  did  go 
out,  came  in  at  such  unheard  of  hours.  It 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.  217 

was  enough  to  drive  her  crazy ;  yet  the  money, 
the  money — 

"Yes,"  said  I,  "I  know;  and  the  money 
ought  to  make  you  overlook  all  the  small  disa- 
greeablenesses  you  mention.  What  is  a  land- 
lady without  patience."  And  I  urged  her  not 
to  turn  them  out. 

"  But  the  girl,"  she  went  on,  "  so  nice,  so 
quiet,  so  sick -looking!  I  cannot  stand  it  to  see 
her  cooped  up  in  that  small  room,  always 
watched  over  by  one  or  both  of  those  burly 
wretches.  The  old  man  says  she  is  his  daugh- 
ter and  she  does  not  deny  it,  but  I  would  as 
soon  think  of  that  little  rosy  child  you  see 
cooing  in  the  window  over  the  way,  belonging 
to  the  beggar  going  in  at  the  gate,  as  of  her 
with  her  lady-like  ways  having  any  connection 
with  him  and  his  rough-acting  son.  You  ought 
to  see  her — 

"That  is  just  what  I  want  to  do,"  interrupted 
I.  "  Not  because  you  have  tempted  my  fancy 
by  a  recital  of  her  charms,"  I  hastened  to  add, 
"  but  because  she  is,  if  I  don't  mistake,  a  woman 
for  whose  discovery  and  rescue,  a  large  sum  of 
money  has  been  offered." 


2i8  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

And  without  further  disguise  I  acquainted 
the  startled  woman  before  me  with  the  fact  that 
I  was  not,  as  she  had  always  considered,  the 
clerk  out  of  employment  whose  daily  business 
it  was  to  sally  forth  in  quest  of  a  situation,  but 
a  member  of  the  city  police. 

She  was  duly  impressed  and  easily  persuaded 
to  second  all  my  operations  as  far  as  her  poor 
wits  would  allow,  giving  me  free  range  of  her 
upper  story,  and  above  all,  promising  •  that 
secrecy  without  which  all  my  finely  laid  plans 
for  capturing  the  rogues  without  raising  a 
scandal,  would  fall  headlong  to  the  ground. 

Behold  me,  then,  by  noon  of  that  same  day 
domiciled  in  an  apartment  next  to  the  one 
whose  door  bore  that  scarlet  sign  which  had 
aroused  within  me  such  feverish  hopes  the 
night  before.  Clad  in  the  seedy  garments  of  a 
broken  down  French  artist  whose  acquaintance 
I  had  once  made,  with  something  of  his  air  and 
general  appearance  and  with  a  few  of  his 
wretched  daubs  hung  about  on  the  white- 
washed wall,  I  commenced  with  every  prospect 
of  success  as  I  thought,  that  quiet  espionage  of 
the  hall  and  its  inhabitants  which  I  considered 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          219 

necessary  to  a  proper  attainment  of  the  end  I 
had  in  view. 

A  racking  cough  was  one  of  the  peculiarities 
of  my  friend,  and  determined  to  assume  the 
character  in  toto,  I  allowed  myself  to  startle  the 
silence  now  and  then  with  a  series  of  gasps  and 
chokings  that  whether  agreeable  or  not,  cer- 
tainly were  of  a  character  to  show  that  I  had 
no  desire  to  conceal  my  presence  from  those  I 
had  come  among.  Indeed  it  was  my  desire  to 
acquaint  them  as  fully  and  as  soon  as  possible 
with  the  fact  of  their  having  a  neighbor :  a 
weak-eyed  half-alive  innocent  to  be  sure,  but 
yet  a  neighbor  who  would  keep  his  door  open 
night  and  day — for  the  warmth  of  the  hall  of 
course — and  who  with  the  fretful  habit  of  an 
old  man  who  had  once  been  a  gentleman  and 
a  beau,  went  rambling  about  through  the  hall 
speaking  to  those  he  met  and  expecting  a  civil 
word  in  return.  When  he  was  not  rambling 
or  coughing  he  made  architectural  monsters 
out  of  cardboard,  wherewith  to  tempt  the  pen- 
nies out  of  the  pockets  of  unwary  children,  an 
employment  that  kept  him  chained  to  a  small 
table  in  the  centre  of  his  room  directly  opposite 
the  open  door. 


22O  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

As  I  expected  I  had  scarcely  given  way  to 
three  separate  fits  of  coughing,  when  the  door 
next  me  opened  with  a  jerk  and  a  rough  voice 
called  out, 

"  Who's  that  making  all  that  to  do  about 
here?  If  you  don't  stop  that  infernal  noise  in 
a  hurry— 

A  soft  voice  interrupted  him  and  he  drew 
back.  "  I  will  go  see,"  said  those  gentle  tones, 
and  Luttra  Blake,  for  I  knew  it  was  she  before 
the  skirt  of  her  robe  had  advanced  beyond  the 
door,  stepped  out  into  the  hall. 

I  was  yet  bent  over  my  work  when  she 
paused  before  me.  The  fact  is  I  did  not  dare 
look  up,  the  moment  was  one  of  such  import- 
ance to  me. 

"  You  have  a  dreadful  cough,"  said  she  with 
that  low  ring  of  sympathy  in  her  voice  that 
goes  unconsciously  to  the  heart.  "  Is  there  no 
help  for  it  ?  " 

I  pushed  back  my  work,  drew  my  hand  over 
my  eyes,  (I  did  not  need  to  make  it  tremble) 
and  glanced  up.  "  No,"  said  I  with  a  shake  of 
my  head,  "  but  it  is  not  always  so  bad.  I  beg 
y  »ur  pardon,  miss,  if  it  disturbs  you." 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          221 

She  threw  back  the  shawl  which  she  had 
held  drawn  tightly  over  her  head,  and  advanced 
with  an  easy  gliding  step  close  to  my  side. 
"  You  do  not  disturb  me,  but  my  father  is — is, 
well  a  trifle  cross  sometimes,  and  if  he  should 
speak  up  a  little  harsh  now  and  then,  you  must 
not  mind.  I  am  sorry  you  are  so  ill." 

What  is  there  in  some  women's  look,  some 
women's  touch  that  more  than  all  beauty  goes 
to  the  heart  and  subdues  it.  As  she  stood  there 
before  me  in  her  dark  worsted  dress  and  coarse 
shawl,  with  her  locks  simply  braided  and  her 
whole  person  undignified  by  art  and  ungraced 
by  ornament,  she  seemed  just  by  the  power  of 
her  expression  and  the  witchery  of  her  manner, 
the  loveliest  woman  I  had  ever  beheld. 

"  You  are  veree  kind,  veree  good,"  I  mur- 
mured, half  ashamed  of  my  disguise,  though  it 
was  assumed  for  the  purpose  of  rescuing  her. 
"  Your  sympathy  goes  to  my  heart."  Then  as 
a  deep  growl  of  impatience  rose  from  the  room 
at  my  side,  I  motioned  her  to  go  and  not  irri- 
tate the  man  who  seemed  to  have  such  control 
over  her. 

"  In  a  minute,"  answered  she,  "  first  tell  me 
what  you  are  making." 


222  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

So  I  told  her  and  in  the  course  of  telling,  let 
drop  such  other  facts  about  my  fancied  life  as  I 
wished  to  have  known  to  her  and  through  her 
to  her  father.  She  looked  sweetly  interested 
and  more  than  once  turned  upon  me  that  dark 
eye,  of  which  I  had  heard  so  much,  full  of  tears 
that  were  as  much  for  me,  scamp  that  I  was,  as 
for  her  own  secret  trouble.  But  the  growls  be- 
coming more  and  more  impatient  she  speedily 
turned  to  go,  repeating,  however,  as  she  did  so, 

"  Now  remember  what  I  say,  you  are  not  to 
be  troubled  if  they  do  speak  cross  to  you. 
They  make  noise  enough  themselves  sometimes, 
as  you  will  doubtless  be  assured  of  to-night." 

And  the  lips  which  seemed  to  have  grown 
stiff  and  cold  with  her  misery,  actually  soft- 
ened into  something  like  a  smile. 

The  nod  which  I  gave  her  in  return  had  the 
solemity  of  a  vow  in  it. 

My  mind  thus  assured  as  to  the  correctness 
of  my  suspicions,  and  the  way  thus  paved  to 
the  carrying  out  of  my  plans,  I  allowed  some 
few  days  to  elapse  without  further  action  on  my 
part.  My  motive  was  to  acquaint  myself  as 
fully  as  possible  with  the  habits  and  ways  of 


The  Mark  of  tlie  Red  Cross.          223 

these  two  desperate  men,  before  making  the 
attempt  to  capture  them  upon  which  so  many 
interests  hung.  For  while  I  felt  it  would  be 
highly  creditable  to  my  sagacity,  as  well  as 
valuable  to  my  reputation  as  a  detective,  to 
restore  these  escaped  convicts  in  any  way 
possible  into  the  hands  of  justice,  my  chief  am- 
bition after  all  was  to  so  manage  the  affair  as 
to  save  the  wife  of  Mr.  Blake,  not  only  from  the 
consequences  of  their  despair,  but  from  the 
publicity  and  scandal  attendant  upon  the  open 
arrest  of  two  heavily  armed  men.  Strategy, 
therefore,  rather  than  force  was  to  be  employed, 
and  strategy  to  be  successful  must  be  founded 
upon  the  most  thorough  knowledge  of  the  mat- 
ter with  which  one  has  to  deal.  Three  days, 
then,  did  I  give  to  the  acquiring  of  that  knowl- 
edge, the  result  of  which  was  the  possession  of 
the  following  facts. 

1 .  That  the  landlady  was  right  when  she  told 
me  the  girl  was  never  left  alone,  one  of  the  men, 
if  not  the  father  then  the  son,  always  remaining 
with  her. 

2.  That  while  thus  guarded,  she  was  not  so 
restricted  but  that  she  had  the  liberty  of  walk- 


224  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

ing  in  the  hall, though  never  for  any  length  ol 
time. 

3.  That  the  cross  on  the  door  seemed   to 
possess  some  secret  meaning  connected  with 
their  presence  in  the   house,    it  having   been 
erased  one  evening  when  the  whole  three  went 
out  on  some  matter  or  other,  only  to  be  chalked 
on  again  when  in  an  hour  or  so  later,  father 
and  daughter  returned  alone. 

4.  That  it  was  the  father  and  not  the  son 
who  made    such    purchases    as    were    needed, 
while  it  was  the  son  and  not  the  father  who 
carried  on  whatever  operations   they  had   on 
hand ;  nightfall  being  the  favorite  hour  for  the 
one  and  midnight  for  the  other;  though  it  not 
infrequently  happened  that  the  latter  sauntered 
out  for  a  short  time  also  in  the  afternoon,  prob- 
ably for  the  drink  he  could  not  go  long  without. 

5.  That  they  were  men  of  great  strength  but 
little  alertness  ;  the  stray  glimpses  I  had  had  of 
them,  revealing  a  breadth  of  back  that  was  truly 
formidable,  if  it  had  not  been  joined  to  a  heavi- 
ness of  motion  that  proclaimed  a  certain  stolidity 
of  mind  that  was  eminently  in  our  favor. 

How  best  to  use  these  facts  in  the  building 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          226 

up  of  a  matured  plan  of  action,  was,  then,  the 
problem.  By  noon  of  a  certain  day  I  believed 
it  to  have  been  solved,  and  reluctant  as  I  was 
to  leave  the  spot  of  my  espionage  even  for 
the  hour  or  two  necessary  to  a  visit  to  head- 
quarters, I  found  myself  compelled  to  do  so. 
Packing  up  in  a  small  basket  I  had  for  the  pur- 
pose, the  little  articles  I  had  been  engaged 
during  the  last  few  days  in  making,  I  gave  way 
to  a  final  fit  of  coughing  so  hollow  aud  sepul- 
chural  in  its  tone,  that  it  awoke  a  curse  from 
the  next  room  deep  as  the  growl  of  a  wild 
beast,  and  still  continuing,  finally  brought 
Luttra  to  the  door  with  that  look  of  compassion 
on  her  face  that  always  called  up  a  flush  to  my 
cheek  whether  I  wished  it  or  no. 

"  Ah,  Monsieur,  I  am  afraid  your  cough  is 
very  bad  to-day.  O  I  see  ;  you  have  been 
getting  ready  to  go  out— 

"  Come  back  here,"  broke  in  a  heavy  voice 
from  the  room  she  had  left.  "  What  do  you 
mean  by  running  off  to  palaver  with  that  old 

rascal  every  time  he  opens  his battery  of 

a  cough  ?  " 

A  smile  that  went  through  me  like  the  cut 
of  a  knife,  flashed  for  a  moment  on  her  face. 


226  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

"  My  father  is  in  one  of  his  impatient  moods," 
said  she,  "  you  had  better  go.  I  hope  you  will 
be  successful,"  she  murmured,  glancing  wist- 
fully at  my  basket. 

"  What  is  that  ?  "  again  came  thundering  on 
our  ears.  "  Successful  ?  What  are  you  two 
up  to  ?  "  And  we  heard  the  rough  clatter  of 
advancing  steps. 

"  Go,"  said  she  ;  "  you  are  weak  and  old  ; 
and  when  you  come  back,  try  and  not  cough." 
And  she  gave  me  a  gentle  push  towards  the 
door. 

"  When  I  come  back,"  I  began,  but  was 
forced  to  pause,  the  elder  Schoenmaker  having 
by  this  time  reached  the  open  doorway  where 
he  stood  frowning  in  upon  us  in  a  way  that 
made  my  heart  stand  still  for  her. 

"  What  are  you  two  talking  about  ?  "  said  he  ; 
"  and  what  have  you  got  in  your  basket  there  ?  " 
he  continued  with  a  stride  forward  that  shook 
the  floor. 

"  Only  some  little  toys  that  he  has  been 
making,  and  is  now  going  out  to  sell,"  was  her 
low  answer  given  with  a  quick  deprecatory 
gesture  such  as  I  doubt  if  she  ever  used  for 
herself.  — 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          227 

"  Nothing  more  ?  "  asked  he  in  German  with 
a  red  glare  in  the  eye  he  turned  towards  her. 

"  Nothing  more,"  replied  she  in  the  same 
tongue.  "  You  may  believe  me." 

He  gave  a  deep  growl  and  turned  away. 
"  If  there  was,"  said  he,  "  you  know  what 
would  happen."  And  unheeding  the  wild  keen 
shudder  that  seized  her  at  the  word,  making 
her  insensible  for  the  moment  to  all  and  every- 
thing about  her,  he  laid  one  heavy  hand  upon 
her  slight  shoulder  and  led  her  from  the  room. 

I  waited  no  longer  than  was  necessary  to 
carry  my  feeble  and  faltering  steps  appropriately 
down  the  stairs,  to  reach  the  floor  below  and 
gain  the  landlady's  presence. 

"  Do  you  go  up,"  said  I,  "  and  sit  on  those 
stairs  till  I  come  back.  If  you  hear  the  least 
cry  of  pain  or  sound  of  struggle  from  that 
young  girl's  room,  do  you  call  at  once  for  help. 
I  will  have  a  policeman  standing  on  the  corner 
below." 

The  good  woman  nodded  and  proceeded  at 
once  to  take  up  her  work-basket.  "  Lucky 
there's  a  window  up  there,  so  I  can  see,"  I 
heard  her  mutter.  "  I've  no  time  to  throw 
away  even  on  deeds  of  chanty." 


228  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

Notwithstanding  which  precaution,  I  was  in 
constant  anxiety  during  my  absence  ;  an  ab- 
sence necessarily  prolonged  as  I  had  to  stop 
and  explain  matters  to  the  Superintendent,  as 
well  as  hunt  up  Mr.  Gryce  and  get  his  consent 
to  assist  me  in  the  matter  of  the  impending 
arrest 

I  found  the  latter  in  his  own  home  and  more 
than  enthusiastic  upon  the  subject. 

"  Well,"  said  he  after  I  had  informed  him  of 
the  discoveries  I  had  made,  "  the  fates  seem  to 
prosper  you  in  this.  /  have  not  received  an 
inkling  of  light  upon  the  matter  since  I  parted 
from  you  at  Mr.  Blake's  house.  By  the  way  I 
saw  that  gentleman  this  morning  and  I  tell  you 
we  will  find  him  a  grateful  man  if  this  affair  can 
be  resolved  satisfactorily," 

'  That  is  good,"  said  I,  "gratitude  is  what  we 
want."  Then  shortly,  "  Perhaps  it  is  no  more 
than  our  duty  to  let  him  know  that  his  wife  is 
safe  and  under  my  eye  ;  though  I  would  by  no 
means  advocate  his  knowing  just  how  near  him 
she  is,  till  the  moment  comes  when  he  is  wanted, 
or  we  shall  have  a  lover's  impetuosity  to  deal 
with  as  well  as  all  the  rest."  Then  with  a  hur- 


The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross.          229 

ried  rememberance  of  a  possible  contingency, 
went  on  to  say,  "But,  by  the  way,  in  case  we 
should  need  the  cooperation  of  Mrs.  Blake  in 
what  we  have  before  us,  you  had  better  get 
a  line  written  in  French  from  Mrs.  Daniels,  ex- 
pressive of  her  belief  in  Mr.  Blake's  present 
affection  for  his  wife.  The  latter  will  not  other- 
wise trust  us,  or  understand  that  we  are  to  be 
obeyed  in  whatever  we  may  demand.  Let  it 
be  unsigned  and  without  names  in  case  of  acci- 
dent ;  and  if  the  housekeeper  don't  understand 
French,  tell  her  to  get  some  one  to  help  her  that 
does,  only  be  sure  that  the  handwriting  em- 
ployed is  her  own." 

Mr.  Gryce  seemed  to  perceive  the  wisdom  of 
this  precaution  and  promised  to  procure  me 
such  a  note  by  a  certain  hour,  after  which  I  re- 
lated to  him  the  various  other  details  of  the 
capture  such  as  I  had  planned  it,  meeting  to  my 
secret  gratification  an  unqualified  approval  that 
went  far  towards  alleviating  that  wound  to  my 
pride  which  I  had  received  from  him  in  the 
beginning  of  this  affair. 

"  Let  all  things  proceed  as  you  have  deter- 
mined, and  we  shall  accomplish  something  that 


230  The  Mark  of  the  Red  Cross. 

it  will  be  a  life-long  satisfaction  to  remember," 
said  he  ;  "  but  you  must  be  prepared  for  some 
twist  of  the  screw  which  you  do  not  anticipate. 
I  never  knew  anything  to  go  off  just  as  one 
prognosticates  it  must,  except  once,"  he  added 
thoughtfully,  "  and  then  it  was  with  a  surprise 
attached  to  it  that  well  nigh  upset  me  notwith- 
standing all  my  preparations." 

"  You  won  a  great  success  that  day,"  re- 
marked I.  "I  hope  the  fates  will  be  as  pro- 
pitious to  me  to-morrow.  Failure  now  would 
break  my  heart." 

"  But  you  won't  fail,"  exclaimed  he.  "  I  my- 
self am  resolved  to  see  you  through  this  matter 
with  credit." 

And  in  this  assurance  I  returned  to  my 
lodgings  where  I  found  the  landlady  sitting 
where  I  had  left  her,  darning  her  twenty-third 
sock. 

"  I  have  to  mend  for  a  dozen  men  and  three 
boys,"  said  she,  "  and  the  boys  are  the  worst 
by  a  heap  sight.  Look  at  that,  will  you,"  hold- 
ing up  a  darn  with  a  bit  of  stocking  attached. 
*  That  hole  was  made  playing  shinny." 

I  uttered  my  condolences  and  asked  if  any 


The  Mark  of  tfie  Red  Cross.          231 

sound  or  disturbance  had  reached  her  ears 
from  above. 

"  O  no,  all  is  right  up  there ;  I've  scarcely 
heard  a  whisper  since  you've  been  gone." 

I  gave  her  a  pat  on  the  chin  scarcely  consist- 
ent with  my  aged  and  tottering  mien  and  pro* 
ceeded.  to  shamble  painfully  to  my  room. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  CAPTURE. 

PROMPTLY  next  morning  at  the  desig- 
nated hour,  came  the  little  note  promised 
me  by  Mr.  Gryce.  It  was  put  in  my  hand  with 
many  sly  winks  by  the  landlady  herself,  who 
developed  at  this  crisis  quite  an  adaptation  for, 
if  not  absolute  love  of  intrigue  and  mystery. 
Glancing  over  it — it  was  unsealed — and  finding 
it  entirely  unintelligible,  I  took  it  for  granted  it 
was  all  right  and  put  it  by  till  chance,  or  if  that 
failed,  strategy,  should  give  me  an  opportunity 
to  communicate  with  Mrs.  Blake.  An  hour 
passed  ;  the  doors  of  their  rooms  remained  un- 
closed. A  half  hour  more  dragged  its  slow 
minutes  away,  and  no  sound  had  come  from 
their  precincts  save  now  and  then  a  mumbled 
word  of  parley  between  the  father  and  son,  a 
short  command  to  the  daughter,  or  a  not-to-be- 

933 


The    Capture.  233 

restrained  oath  of  annoyance  from  one  or  both 
of  the  heavy-limbed  brutes  as  something  was 
said  or  done  to  disturb  them  in  their  indolent 
repose.  At  last  my  impatience  was  to  be  no 
longer  restrained.  Rising,  I  took  a  bold  reso- 
lution. If  the  mountain  would  not  come  to 
Mahomet,  Mahomet  would  go  to  the  mountain. 
Taking  my  letter  in  the  hand,  I  deliberately 
proceeded  to  the  door  marked  with  the  ominous 
red  cross  and  knocked. 

A  surprised  snarl  from  within,  followed  by  a 
sudden  shuffling  of  feet  as  the  two  men  leaped 
upright  from  what  I  presume  had  been  a  recum- 
bent position,  warned  me  to  be  ready  to  face 
defiance  if  not  the  fury  of  despair ;  and  curb- 
ing with  a  determined  effort  the  slight  sinking 
of  heart  natural  to  a  man  of  my  make  on  the 
threshold  of  a  very  doubtful  adventure,  I 
awaited  with  as  much  apparent  unconcern  as 
possible,  the  quick  advance  of  that  light  foot 
which  seemed  to  be  ready  to  perform  all  the 
biddings  of  these  hardened  wretches,  much  as 
it  shrunk  from  following  in  the  ways  of  their 
infamy. 

"  Ah  miss,"  said  I,  as  the  door  opened  re- 


234  The    Capture. 

vealing  in  the  gap  her  white  face  clouded  with 
some  new  and  sudden  apprehension,  "  I  beg 
your  pardon  but  I  am  an  old  man,  and  I  got  a 
letter  to-day  and  my  eyes  are  so  weak  with  the 
work  I've  been  doing  that  I  cannot  read  it.  It 
is  from  some  one  I  love,  and  would  you  be  so 
kind  as  to  read  off  the  words  for  me  and  so  re- 
lieve an  old  man  from  his  anxiety." 

The  murmur  of  suspicion  behind  her,  warned 
her  to  throw  wide  open  the  door.     "  Certainly," 
said  she,  "  if  I  can,"  taking  the  paper  in  her 
hand. 

"  Just  let  me  get  a  squint  at  that  first,"  said  a 
sullen  voice  behind  her  ;  and  the  youngest  of 
the  two  Schoenmakers  stepped  forward  and 
tore  the  paper  out  of  her  grasp. 

"  You  are  too  suspicious,"  murmured  she, 
looking  after  him  with  the  first  assumption  of 
that  air  of  power  and  determination  which  I 
had  heard  so  eloquently  described  by  the  man 
who  loved  her.  "  There  is  nothing  in  those 
lines  which  concerns  us ;  let  me  have  them 
back." 

"  You  hold  your  tongue,"  was  the  brutal  re- 
ply as  the  rough  man  opened  the  folded  paper 


T/ie    Capture.  235 

and  read  or  tried  to  read  what  was  written 
within.  "  Blast  it !  it's  French,"  was  his  slow 
exclamation  after  a  moment  spent  in  this  way. 
"  See,"  and  he  thrust  it  towards  his  father  who 
stood  frowning  heavily  a  few  feet.  off. 

"  Of  course,  it's  French,"  cried  the  girl. 
"  Would  you  write  a  note  in  English  to  father 
there  ?  The  man's  friends  are  French  like 
himself,  and  must  write  in  their  own  language." 

"  Here  take  it  and  read  it  out,"  commanded 
her  father  ;  "  and  mind  you  tell  us  what  it 
means.  I'll  have  nothing  going  on  here  that  I 
don't  understand." 

"  Read  me  the  French  words  first,  miss," 
said  I.  "  It  is  my  letter  and  I  want  to  know 
what  my  friend  has  to  say  to  me." 

Nodding  at  me  with  a  gentle  look,  she  cast 
her  eyes  on  the  paper  and  began  to  read  : 

"  Calmez  vous,  mon  amie,  il  vous  aime  et  il  vous 
cherche.  Dans  quatre  heures  vous  serez  heureuse.  Al- 
lous  du  courage,  et  surtout  soyez  maitre  de  vous  meme." 

"  Thanks  !  "  I  exclaimed  in  a  calm  matter-of- 
fact  way  as  I  perceived  the  sudden  tremor  that 
seized  her  as  she  recognized  the  handwriting 


256  The    Capture. 

and  realized  that  the  words  were  for  her. 
"  My  friend  says  he  will  pay  my  week's  rent 
and  bids  me  be  at  home  to  receive  him,"  said 
I,  turning  upon  the  two  ferocious  faces  peering 
over  her  shoulder,  with  a  look  of  meek  unsus- 
piciousness  in  my  eye,  that  in  a  theatre  would 
have  brought  down  the  house. 

"  Is  that  what  those  words  say,  you  ?  "  asked 
the  father,  pointing  over  her  shoulder  to  the 
paper  she  held. 

"  I  will  translate  for  you  word  by  word  what 
it  says,"  replied  she,  nerving  herself  for  the 
crisis  till  her  face  was  like  marble,  though  I 
could  see  she  could  not  prevent  the  gleam  of 
secret  rapture  that  had  visited  her,  from  flash- 
ing fitfully  across  it.  "  Calmez  vous,  mon  amie. 
Do  not  be  afraid,  my  friend.  II  vous  aime  et  it 
vous  cherche.  He  loves  you  and  is  hunting  for 
you.  Dans  quatre  heures  vous  serez  heureuse. 
In  four  hours  you  will  be  happy.  Allans  du  cour- 
age, et  surtout  soyez  maitre  de  vous  m^me.  Then 
take  courage  and  above  all  preserve  your  self- 
possession.  It  is  the  French  way  of  expres- 
sing one's  self,"  observed  she.  "  I  am  glad 
your  friend  is  disposed  to  help  you,"  she  con- 


The    Capture.  237 

tinued,  giving  me  back  the  letter  with  a  smile. 
"  I  am  afraid  you  needed  it." 

In  a  sort  of  maze  I  folded  up  the  letter, 
bowed  my  very  humble  thanks  to  her  and 
shuffled  slowly  back.  The  fact  is  I  had  no 
words  ;  I  was  utterly  dumbfounded.  Half  way 
through  that  letter,  with  whose  contents  you 
must  remember  I  was  unacquainted,  I  would 
have  given  my  whole  chance  of  expected  re- 
ward to  have  stopped  her.  Read  out  such 
words  as  those  before  these  men!  Was  she 
crazy  ?  But  how  naturally  at  the  conclusion 
did  she  with  a  word  make  its  language  seem 
consistent  with  the  meaning  I  had  given  it. 
With  a  fresh  sense  of  my  obligation  to  her,  I 
hurried  to  my  room,  there  to  count  out  the 
minutes  of  another  long  hour  in  anxious  ex- 
pectation of  her  making  that  endeavor  to  com- 
municate with  me,  which  her  new  hopes  and 
fears  must  force  her  to  feel  almost  necessary  to 
her  existence.  At  length,  my  confidence  in 
her  was  rewarded.  Coming  out  into  the  hall, 
she  hurried  past  my  door,  her  finger  on  her  lip. 
I  immediately  rose  and  stood  on  the  threshold 
with  another  paper  in  my  hand,  which  I  had 


238  The    Capture. 

prepared  against  this  opportunity.  As  she 
glided  back,  I  put  it  in  her  hand,  and  warning 
her  with  a  look  not  to  speak,  resumed  my 
usual  occupation.  The  words  I  had  written 
were  as  follows : 

At  or  as  near  the  time  as  possible  of  your  brother's 
going  out,  you  are  to  come  to  this  room  wrapped  in  an 
extra  skirt  and  with  your  shawl  over  your  head:  Leave 
the  skirt  and  shawl  behind  you,  and  withdraw  at  once  to 
the  room  at  the  head  of  the  stairs.  You  are  not  to 
speak,  and  you  are  not  to  vary  from  the  plan  thus  laid 
down.  Your  brother  and  father  are  to  be  arrested, 
whether  or  no  ;  but  if  you  will  do  as  this  commands, 
they  will  be  arrested  without  bloodshed  and  without 
shame  to  one  you  know. 

Her  face  while  she  read  these  lines,  was  a 
study,  but  I  dared  not  soften  toward  it.  Drop- 
ping the  paper  from  her  hand,  she  gave  me 
one  inquiring  look.  But  I  pointed  deter- 
minedly to  the  words  lying  upward  on  the 
floor,  and  would  listen  to  no  appeal.  My  re- 
solve had  its  effect.  Bowing  her  head  with  a 
sorrowful  gesture,  she  laid  her  hand  on  her 
heart,  looked  up  and  glided  from  the  room.  I 
took  up  that  paper  and  tore  it  into  bits. 


The    Capture.  239 

And  now  for  the  first  time  since  I  had  been 
in  the  house,  I  closed  the  door  of  my  room.  I 
had  a  part  to  perform  that  rendered  the  drop- 
ping of  my  disguise  indispensable.  The  old 
French  artist  had  finished  his  work,  and  hence- 
forth must  merge  into  Q.  the  detective.  Short- 
ly before  two  o'clock  my  assistants  began  to 
arrive.  First,  Mr.  Gryce  appeared  on  the 
scene  and  was  stowed  away  in  a  large  room 
on  the  other  side  of  mine.  Next,  two  of  the 
most  agile,  as  well  as  muscular  men  in  the 
force  who,  thanks  to  having  taken  off  their 
shoes  in  the  lower  hall,  gained  the  same  refuge 
without  awakening  the  suspicions  of  those  we 
were  anxious  to  surprise.  Lastly,  the  landlady 
who  went  into  the  closet  to  which  I  had  bidden 
Mrs.  Blake  retire  after  leaving  in  my  room  the 
articles  I  had  mentioned. 

All  was  now  ready  and  waiting  for  the  de- 
parture of  the  youngest  Schoenmaker.  Would 
he  disappoint  us  and  remain  at  home  that  day  ? 
Had  any  suspicions  been  awakened  in  the  stolid 
breasts  of  these  men,  that  would  serve  to  make 
them  more  watchful  than  usual  against  running 
unnecessary  risks  ?  No  ;  at  or  near  the  time 


240  The    Capture. 

for  the  clock  to  strike  two,  their  door  opened 
and  the  tread  of  a  lumbering  foot  was  heard  in 
the  hall.  On  it  came,  passing  my  room  with  a 
rude  stamping  that  gradually  grew  less  distinct 
as  the  hardy  rough  went  down  the  corridor, 
brushing  the  wall  behind  which  Mr.  Gryce  and 
his  men  lay  concealed  with  his  thick  cane,  and 
even  stopping  to  light  his  pipe  in  front  of 
the  small  apartment  where  cowered  our  good 
landlady  with  her  eternal  basket  of  mending  in 
her  lap. 

At  length  all  was  quiet,  and  throwing  open 
my  door,  I  withdrew  into  a  small  closet  connec- 
ted with  my  room,  to  wait  with  indescribable 
impatience,  the  appearance  of  Mrs.  Blake.  She 
came  in  a  very  few  minutes,  remained  for  an 
instant,  and  departed,  leaving  behind  her  as  I 
had  requested,  the  skirt  and  shawl  in  which  she 
had  left  her  father's  presence.  I  at  once  endued 
myself  in  these  articles  of  apparel — taking  care 
to  draw  the  shawl  well  over  my  head — and  with 
a  pocket  handkerchief  to  my  face,  (a  proceeding 
made  natural  enough  by  the  sneeze  which  at 
that  very  moment  I  took  care  should  assail  me) 
walked  boldly  back  to  the  room  from  which  she 
had  just  come. 


The    Capture.  241 

The  door  was  of  course  ajar,  and  as  I  swung 
it  open  with  as  near  a  simulation  of  her  manner 
as  possible,  the  vision  of  her  powerful  father 
lolling  on  a  bench  directly  before  me,  offered 
anything  but  an  encouraging  spectacle  to  my 
eyes.  But  doubling  myself  almost  together 
with  as  ladylike  an  atch-ee  as  my  masculine  nos- 
trils would  allow,  I  succeeded  in  closing  the 
door  and  reaching  a  low  stool  by  the  window 
without  calling  from  him  anything  worse  than 
a  fretful  "  I  hope  you  are  not  going  to  bark  too." 

I  did  not  reply  to  this  of  course,  but  sat  with 
my  face  turned  towards  the  street  in  an  attitude 
which  I  hoped  would  awaken  his  attention 
sufficiently  to  cause  him  to  get  up  and  come 
over  to  my  side.  For  as  he  sat  face  to  the  door 
it  would  be  impossible  to  take  him  by  surprise, 
and  that,  now  that  I  saw  what  a  huge  and  muscu- 
lar creature  he  was,  seemed  to  me  to  be  the  only 
safe  method  before  us.  But,  whether  from  the 
sullenness  of  his  disposition  or  the  very  evident 
laziness  of  the  moment,  he  manifested  no  dis- 
position to  move,  and  hearing  or  thinking  I  did, 
the  stealthy  advance  of  Mr.  Gryce  and  his  com- 
panions down  the  hall,  I  allowed  myself  to  give 


242  The    Capture. 

way  to  a  suppressed  exclamation,  and  leaning 
forward,  pressed  my  forehead  against  the  pane 
of  glass  before  me  as  if  something  of  absorbing 
interest  had  just  taken  place  in  the  street  be- 
neath. 

His  fears  at  once  took  alarm.  Bounding  up 
with  a  curse,  he  strode  towards  me,  muttering, 

"  What's  up  now  ?  What's  that  you  are 
looking  at  ?  "  reaching  my  side  just  as  Mr. 
Gryce  and  his  two  men  softly  opened  the  door 
and  with  a  quick  leap  threw  their  arms  about 
him,  closing  upon  him  with  a  force  he  could  not 
resist,  desperate  as  he  was  and  mighty  in  the 
huge  strength  of  an  unusually  developed  mus- 
cular organization. 

"  You,  you  girl  there,  are  to  blame  for  this!" 
came  mingled  with  curses  from  his  lips,  as  with 
one  huge  pant  he  submitted  to  his  captors. 
"  Only  let  me  get  my  hand  well  upon  you 
once — Damn  it!"  he  suddenly  exclaimed,  drag- 
ging the  whole  three  men  forward  in  his  effort 
to  get  his  mouth  down  to  my  ear,  "  go  and  rub 
that  sign  out  on  the  door  or  I'll — you  know 
what  I'll  do  well  enough.  Do  you  hear?  " 

Rising,  still  with  face  averted,  I  proceeded  to 


The    Capture.  243 

do  what  he  asked.  But  in  another  moment 
seeing  that  he  had  been  effectually  bound  and 
gagged,  I  took  out  the  piece  of  red  chalk  I  had 
kept  in  my  pocket,  and  deliberately  chalked  it 
on  again,  after  which  operation  I  came  back  and 
took  my  seat  as  before  on  the  low  stool  by  the 
window. 

The  object  now  was  to  secure  the  second 
rascal  in  the  same  way  we  had  the  first ;  and 
for  this  purpose  Mr.  Gryce  ordered  the  now 
helpless  giant  to  be  dragged  into  the  adjoining 
small  room  formerly  occupied  by  Mrs.  Blake, 
where  he  and  his  men  likewise  took  up  their 
station  leaving  me  to  confront  as  best  I  might, 
the  surprise  and  consternation  of  the  one 
whose  return  we  now  awaited. 

I  did  not  shrink.  With  that  brave  woman's 
garments  drawn  about  me,  something  of  her 
dauntless  spirit  seemed  to  invade  my  soul,  and 
though  I  expected — But  let  that  come  in  its 
place,  I  am  not  here  to  interest  you  in  myself 
or  my  selfish  thoughts. 

A  half  hour  passed  ;  he  had  never  lingered 
away  so  long  before,  or  so  it  seemed,  and  I  was 
beginning  to  wonder  if  we  should  have  to  keep 


244  The    Capture. 

up  this  strain  of  nerve  for  hours,  when  the  heavy 
tread  was  again  heard  in  the  hall,  and  with  a 
blow  of  the  fist  that  argued  anger  or  a  brutal 
impatience,  he  flung  open  the  door  and  came  in. 
I  did  not  turn  my  head. 

"  Where's  father  ? "  he  growled,  stopping 
where  he  was  a  foot  or  so  from  the  door. 

I  shook  my  head  with  a  slight  gesture  and 
remained  looking  out. 

He  brought  his  cane  down  on  the  floor  with 
a  thump.  "  What  do  you  mean  by  sitting  there 
staring  out  of  the  window  like  mad  and  not 
answering  when  I  ask  you  a  decent  question  ?" 

Still  I  made  no  reply. 

Provoked  beyond  endurance,  yet  held  in 
check  by  that  vague  sense  of  danger  in  the 
air, — which  while  not  amounting  to  apprehen- 
sion is  often  sufficient  to  hold  back  from  ad- 
vance the  most  daring  foot, — he  stood  glaring 
at  me  in  what  I  felt  to  be  a  very  ferocious 
attitude,  but  made  no  offer  to  move.  Instantly 
I  rose  and  still  looking  out  of  the  window, 
made  with  my  hand  what  appeared  to  be  a 
signal  to  some  one  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  way.  The  ruse  was  effective,  With  an 


The    Capture.  24 i 

oath  that  rings  in  my  ears  yet,  he  lifted  his 
heavy  cane  and  advanced  upon  me  with  a 
bound,  only  to  meet  the  same  fate  as  his  father 
at  the  hands  of  the  watchful  detectives.  Not, 
however,  before  that  heavy  cane  came  down 
upon  my  head  in  a  way  to  lay  me  in  a  heap 
at  his  feet  and  to  sow  the  seeds  of  that  blinding 
head-ache,  which  has  afflicted  me  by  spells 
ever  since.  But  this  termination  of  the  affair 
was  no  more  than  I  had  feared  from  the  begin- 
ning ;  and  indeed  it  was  as  much  to  protect 
Mrs.  Blake  from  the  wrath  of  these  men,  as 
from  any  requirements  of  the  situation  I  had 
assumed  the  disguise  I  then  wore.  I  there- 
fore did  not  allow  this  mishap  to  greatly 
trouble  me,  unpleasant  as  it  was  at  the  time, 
but,  as  soon  as  ever  I  could  do  so,  rose  from 
the  floor  and  throwing  off  my  strange  habili- 
ments, proceeded  to  finish  up  to  my  satisfac- 
tion, the  work  already  so  successfully  begun. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

LOVE  AND   DUTY. 

DISMISSING  the  men  who  had  assisted  us 
in  the  capture  of  these  two  hardy  villains, 
we  ranged  our  prisoners  before  us. 

"  Now,"  said  Mr.  Gryce,  "  no  fuss  and  no 
swearing ;  you  are  in  for  it,  and  you  might  as 
well  take  it  quietly  as  any  other  way." 

"  Give  me  a  clutch  on  that  girl,  that's  all," 
said  her  father,  "  Where  is  she  ?  Let  me  see 
her ;  every  father  has  a  right  to  see  his  own 
daughter," 

"  You  shall  see  her,"  returned  my  superior, 
"  but  not  till  her  husband  is  here  to  protect 
her." 

"  Her  husband?  ah,  you  know  about  that  do 
you  ?  "  growled  the  heavy  voice  of  the  son. 
"  A  rich  man  they  say  he  is  and  a  proud  one. 
Let  him  come  and  look  at  us  lying  here  like 


Love  and  Duty.  247 

dogs  and  say  how  he  will  enjoy  having  his 
wife's  father  and  brother  grinding  away  their 
lives  in  prison. 

"  Mr.  Blake  is  coming,"  quoth  Mr.  Gryce, 
who  by  some  preconcerted  signal  from  the 
window  had  drawn  that  gentleman  across  the 
street.  "  He  will  tell  you  himself  that  he  con- 
siders prison  the  best  place  for  you." 

"  Blast  you  !  but  he — 

"But  he,  what?"  inquired  I,  as  the  door 
opened  and  Mr.  Blake  with  a  pale  face  and  agi- 
tated mien  entered  the  room. 

The  wretch  did  not  answer.  Rousing  from 
the  cowering  position  in  which  they  had  both 
lain  since  their  capture,  the  father  and  son 
struggled  up  in  some  sort  of  measure  to  their 
feet,  and  with  hot,  anxious  eyes  surveyed  the 
countenance  of  the  gentleman  before  them,  as 
if  they  felt  their  fate  hung  upon  the  expression 
of  his  pallid  face.  The  son  was  the  first  to 
speak. 

"  How  do  you  do,  brother-in-law,"  were  his 
sullen  and  insulting  words. 

o 

Mr.  Blake  shuddered  and  cast  a  look  around. 
"  My  wife  ?  "  murmured  he. 


248  Love  and  Duty. 

"  She  is  well,"  was  the  assurance  given  by 
Mr.  Gryce,  "  and  in  a  room  not  far  from  this.  I 
will  send  for  her  if  you  say  so." 

"  No,  not  yet,"  came  in  a  sort  of  gasp  ;  "  let 
me  look  at  these  wretches  first,  and  understand 
if  I  can  what  my  wife  has  to  suffer  from  her 
connection  with  them." 

"  Your  wife,"  broke  in  the  father,  "  what's 
that  to  do  with  it ;  the  question  is  how  do  you 
like  it  and  what  will  you  do  to  get  us  clear  of 
this  thing." 

"  I  will  do  nothing,"  returned  Mr.  Blake. 
"  You  amply  merit  your  doom  and  you  shall 
suffer  it  to  the  end  for  all  me." 

"  It  will  read  well  in  the  papers,"  exclaimed 
the  son. 

"The  papers  are  to  know  nothing  about  it," 
I  broke  in.  "  All  knowledge  of  your  connect- 
ion with  Mr.  or  Mrs.  Blake  is  to  be  buried  in 
this  spot  before  we  or  you  leave  it.  Not  a 
word  of  her  or  him  is  to  cross  the  lips  of  either 
of  you  from  this  hour.  I  have  set  that  down  as 
a  condition  and  it  has  got  to  be  kept." 

"  You  have,  have  you,"  thundered  in  chorus 
from  father  and  son.  "And  who  are  you  to 


Love  and  Duty.  249 

make  conditions,  and  what  do  you  think  we  are 
that  you  expect  us  to  keep  them  ?  Can  you 
do  anymore  than  put  us  back  from  where  we 
came  from  ? " 

For  reply  I  took  from  my  pocket  the  ring  I 
had  fished  out  of  the  ashes  of  their  kitchen 
stove  on  that  memorable  visit  to  their  house, 
and  holding  it  up  before  their  faces,  looked  them 
steadily  in  the  eye. 

A  sudden  wild  glare  followed  by  a  bluish 
palor  that  robbed  their  countenances  of  their 
usual  semblance  of  daring  ferocity,  answered 
me  beyond  my  fondest  hopes. 

"  I  got  that  out  of  the  stove  where  you  had 
burned  your  prison  clothing,"  said  I.  "  It  is  a 
cheap  affair,  but  it  will  send  you  to  the  gallows 
if  I  choose  to  use  it  against  you.  The  pedlar — " 

"  Hush,"  exclaimed  the  father  in  a  low 
choked  tone  greatly  in  contrast  to  any  he  had 
yet  used  in  all  our  dealings  with  him.  "  Throw 
that  ring  out  of  the  window  and  I  promise  to 
hold  my  tongue  about  any  matter  you  don't 
want  spoke  of.  I'm  not  a  fool— 

"  Nor  I,"  was  my  quick  reply,  as  I  restored 
the  ring  to  my  pocket.  "  While  that  remains 


25o  Love  and  Duty. 

in  my  possession  together  with  certain  facts 
concerning  your  habits  in  that  old  house  of 
yours  which  have  lately  been  made  known  to 
me,  your  life  hangs  by  a  thread  I  can  any  min- 
ute snip  in  two.  Mr.  Blake  here,  has  spent 
some  portion  of  a  night  in  your  house  and 
knows  how  near  it  lies  to  a  certain  precipice,  at 
foot  of  which — 

"  Mein  Gott,  father,  why  don't  you  say  some- 
thing !  "  leaped  in  cowed  accents  from  the  son's 
white  lips.  "  If  they  want  us  to  keep  quiet,  let 
them  say  so  and  not  go  talking  about  things 
that—" 

"  Now  look  here,"  interposed  Mr.  Gryce 
stepping  before  them  with  a  look  that  closed 
their  mouths  at  once.  "  I  will  just  tell  you 
what  we  propose  to  do.  You  are  to  go  back 
to  prison  and  serve  your  time  out,  there  is  no 
help  for  that,  but  as  long  as  you  behave  your- 
selves and  continue  absolutely  silent  regarding 
your  relationship  to  the  wife  of  this  gentleman, 
you  shall  have  paid  into  a  certain  bank  that  he 
will  name,  a  monthly  sum  that  upon  your  dis- 
missal from  jail  shall  be  paid  you  with  whatever 
interest  it  may  have  accumulated.  You  are 


Love  and  Duty.  261 

ready  to  promise  that,  are  you  not?"  he  inquir- 
ed turning  to  Mr.  Blake. 

That  gentleman  bowed  and  named  the  sum, 
which  was  liberal  enough,  and  the  bank. 

"  But,"  continued  the  detective,  ignoring  the 
sudden  flash  of  eye  that  passed  between  the 
father  and  son,  "  let  me  or  any  of  us  hear  of 
a  word  having  been  uttered  by  you,  which  in 
the  remotest  way  shall  suggest  that  you  have 
in  the  world  such  a  connection  as  Mrs.  Blake, 
and  the  money  not  only  stops  going  into  the 
bank,  but  old  scores  shall  be  raked  up  against 
you  with  a  zeal  which  if  it  does  not  stop  your 
mouth  in  one  way,  will  in  another,  and  that  with 
a  suddenness  you  will  not  altogether  relish." 

The  men  with  a  dogged  air  from  which  the 
bravado  had  however  fled,  turned  and  looked 
from  one  to  the  other  of  us  in  a  fearful,  inquir- 
ing way  that  duly  confessed  to  the  force  of  the 
impression  made  by  these  words  upon  their 
slow  but  not  unimaginative  minds. 

"  Do  you  three  promise  to  keep  our  secret  if 
we  keep  yours  ?  "  muttered  the  father  with  an 
uneasy  glance  at  my  pocket. 

;<  We  certainly  do,"  was  our  solemn  return. 


252  Love  and  Duty. 

"  Very  well ;  call  in  the  girl  and  let  me  just 
look  at  her,  then,  before  we  go.  We  won't  say 
nothing,"  continued  he,  seeing  Mr.  Blake  shrink, 
"  only  she  is  my  daughter  and  if  I  cannot  bid 
her  good-bye — " 

"  Let  him  see  his  child,"  cried  Mr.  Blake 
turning  with  a  shudder  to  the  window.  "  I — I 
wish  it,"  added  he. 

Straightway  with  hasty  foot  I  left  the  room. 
Going  to  the  little  closet  where  I  had  ordered 
his  wife  to  remain  concealed,  I  knocked  and 
entered.  She  was  crouched  in  an  attitude  of 
prayer  on  the  floor,  her  face  buried  in  her  hands, 
and  her  whole  person  breathing  that  agony  of 
suspense  that  is  a  torture  to  the  sensitive  soul. 

"  Mrs.  Blake,"  said  I,  dismissing  the  landlady 
who  stood  in  helpless  distress  beside  her,  "  the 
arrest  has  been  satisfactorily  made  and  your 
father  calls  for  you  to  say  good-bye  before  go- 
ing away  with  us.  Will  you  come  ?  " 

"  But  my — my — Mr.  Blake  ?  "  exclaimed  she 
leaping  to  her  feet.  "  I  am  sure  I  heard  his 
footstep  in  the  hall  ?  " 

"  He  is  with  your  father  and  brother.  It  was 
at  his  command  I  came  for  you." 


Love  and  Duty.  263 

A  gleam  hard  to  interpret  flashed  for  an  in- 
stant over  her  face.  With  her  eye  on  the  door 
she  towered  in  her  womanly  dignity,  while 
thoughts  innumerable  seemed  to  rush  in  wild 
succession  through  her  mind. 

"  Will  you  not  come  ?  "     I  urged. 

"  I — ,"  she  paused.  "  I  will  go  see  my 
father,"  she  murmured,  "  but — 

Suddenly  she  trembled  and  drew  back  ;  a 
step  was  in  the  hall,  on  the  threshold,  at  her 
side  ;  Mr.  Blake  had  come  to  reclaim  his  bride. 

"  Mr.  Blake  !  " 

The  word  came  from  her  in  a  low  tone, 
shaken  with  the  concentrated  anguish  of 
many  a  month  of  longing  and  despair,  but 
there  was  no  invitation  in  its  sound,  and  he 
who  had  held  out  his  arms,  stopped  and  sur- 
veying her  with  a  certain  deprecatory  glance 
in  his  proud  eye,  said, 

"You  are  right;  I  have  first  my  acknowl- 
edgments to  make  and  your  forgiveness  to  ask 
before  I  can  hope— 

"  No,  no,"  she  broke  in,  "  your  coming  here 
is  enough,  I  request  no  more.  If  you  felt  un- 
kindly toward  me — " 


254  Love  and  Duty. 

"  Unkindly  ? "  A  world  of  love  thrilled  in 
that  word.  "  Luttra,  I  am  your  husband  and 
rejoice  that  I  am  so  ;  it  is  to  lay  the  devotion 
of  my  heart  and  life  at  your  feet  that  I  seek 
your  presence  this  hour.  The  year  has  taught 
me — ah,  what  has  not  the  year  taught  me  of  the 
worth  of  her  I  so  recklessly  threw  from  me  on 
my  wedding  day.  Luttra," — he  held  out  his 
hand — "  will  you  crown  all  your  other  acts  of 
devotion  with  a  pardon  that  will  restore  me  to 
my  manhood  and  that  place  in  your  esteem 
which  I  covet  above  every  other  earthly 
good  ? 

Her  face  which  had  been  raised  to  his  with 
that  earnest  look  we  knew  so  well,  softened 
with  an  ineffable  smile,  but  still  she  did  not  lay 
her  hand  in  his. 

"  And  you  say  this  to  me  in  the  very  hour 
of  my  father's  and  brother's  arrest !  With  the 
remembrance  in  your  mind  of  their  bound  and 
abject  forms  lying  before  you  guarded  by 
police  ;  knowing  too,  that  they  deserve  their 
ignominy  and  the  long  imprisonment  that  a- 
waits  them  ?  " 

"  No,  I  say  it  on  the  day  of  the   discovery 


Lave  and  Ditiy.  255 

and  the  restoration  of  that  wife  for  whom  I 
have  long  searched,  and  to  whom  when  found 
I  have  no  word  to  give  but  welcome,  welcome, 
welcome." 

With  the  same  deep  smile  she  bowed  her 
head,  "  Now  let  come  what  will,  I  can  never 
again  be  unhappy,"  were  the  words  I  caught, 
uttered  in  the  lowest  of  undertones.  But  in 
another  moment  her  head  had  regained  its 
steady  poise  and  a  great  change  had  passed 
over  her  manner. 

"  Mr.  Blake,"  said  she,  "  you  are  good ;  how 
good,  I  alone  can  know  and  duly  appreciate 
who  have  lived  in  your  house  this  last  year  and 
seen  with  eyes  that  missed  nothing,  just  what 
your  surroundings  are  and  have  been  from  the 
earliest  years  of  your  proud  life.  But  good- 
ness must1  not  lead  you  into  the  committal  of 
an  act  you  must  and  will  repent  to  your  dying 
day  ;  or  if  it  does,  I  who  have  learned  my  duty 
in  the  school  of  adversity,  must  show  the 
courage  of  two  and  forbid  what  every  secret 
instinct  of  my  soul  declares  to  be  only  pro- 
vocative of  shame  and  sorrow.  You  would 
take  me  to  your  heart  as  your  wife;  do  you 
realize  what  that  means  ?  " 


256  Love  and  Duty. 

"  I  think  I  do,"  was  his  earnest  reply.  "  Re- 
lief from  heart-ache,  Luttra." 

Her  smooth  brow  wrinkled  with  a  sudden 
spasm  of  pain  but  her  firm  lips  did  not 
quiver. 

"  It  means,"  said  she,  drawing  nearer  but  not 
with  that  approach  which  indicates  yielding* 
"  it  means,  shame  to  the  proudest  family  that 
lives  in  the  land.  It  means  silence  as  regards 
a  past  blotted  by  suggestions  of  crime  ;  and 
apprehension  concerning  a  future  across  which 
the  shadow  of  prison  walls  must  for  so  many 
years  lie.  It  means,  the  hushing  of  certain  words 
upon  beloved  lips  ;  the  turning  of  cherished 
eyes  from  visions  where  fathers  and  daughters 
ay,  brothers  and  sisters  are  seen  joined  together 
in  tender  companionship  or  loving  embrace.  It 
means, — God  help  me  to  speak  out — a  home 
without  the  sanctity  of  memories  ;  a  husband 
without  the  honors  he  has  been  accustomed  to 
enjoy ;  a  wife  with  a  fear  gnawing  like  a  ser- 
pent into  her  breast ;  and  children,  yes,  per- 
haps children  from  whose  innocent  lips  the 
sacred  word  of  grandfather  can  never  fall  with- 
out wakening  a  blush  on  the  cheeks  of  their 


Love  and  Duty.  25y 

parents,  which  all  their  lovesome  prattle  will  be 
helpless  to  chase  away." 

"  Luttra,  your  father  and  your  brother  have 
given  their  consent  to  go  their  dark  way  alone 
and  trouble  you  no  more.  The  shadow  you 
speak  of  may  lie  on  your  heart,  dear  wife,  for 
these  men  are  of  your  own  blood,  but  it  need 
never  invade  the  hearthstone  beside  which  I 
ask  you  to  sit.  The  world  will  never  know, 
whether  you  come  with  me  or  not,  that  Luttra 
Blake  was  ever  Luttra  Schoenmaker.  Will 
you  not  then  give  me  the  happiness  of  striving 
to  make  such  amends  for  the  past,  that  you 
too,  will  forget  you  ever  bore  any  other  name 
than  the  one  you  now  honor  so  truly  ?  " 

"  O  do  not,"  she  began  but  paused  with  a 
sudden  control  of  her  emotion  that  lifted  her 
into  an  atmosphere  almost  holy  in  its  signifi- 
cance. "  Mr.  Blake,"  said  she,  "  I  am  a  woman 
and  therefore  weak  to  the  voice  of  love  plead- 
ing in  my  ear.  But  in  one  thing  I  am  strong, 
and  that  is  in  my  sense  of  what  is  due  to  the 
man  I  have  sworn  to  honor.  Eleven  months 
ago  I  left  you  because  your  pleasure  and  my 
own  dignity  demanded  it ;  to-day  I  put  by  all 


258  Love  and  Duty. 

the  joy  and  exaltation  you  offer,  because  youf 
position  as  a  gentleman,  and  your  happiness  as 
a  man  equally  requires  it." 

"  My  happiness  as  a  man ! "  he  broke  in. 
"  Ah,  Luttra  if  you  love  me  as  I  do  you— 

"  I  might  perhaps  yield,"  she  allowed  with  a 
faint  smile.  "  But  I  love  you  as  a  girl  brought 
up  amid  surroundings  from  which  her  whole 
being  recoiled,  must  love  the  one  who  first 
brought  light  into  her  darkness  and  opened  up 
to  her  longing  feet  the  way  to  a  life  of  culture, 
purity  and  honor.  I  were  the  basest  of  women 
could  I  consent  to  repay  such  a  boundless 
favor — " 

"  But  Luttra,"  he  again  broke  in,  "  you  mar- 
ried me  knowing  what  your  father  and  brother 
were  capable  of  committing." 

"  Yes,  yes  ;  I  was  blinded  by  passion,  a  girl's 
passion,  Mr.  Blake,  born  of  glamour  and  grati- 
tude ;  not  the  self-forgetting  devotion  of  a 
woman  who  has  tasted  the  bitterness  of  life 
and  so  learned  its  lesson  of  sacrifice.  I  may 
not  have  thought,  certainly  I  did  not  realize, 
what  I  was  doing.  Besides,  my  father  and  broth- 
er were  not  convicted  criminals  at  that  time, 


Love  and  Duty.  z5g 

however  weak  they  had  proved  themselves 
under  temptation.  And  then  I  believed  I  had 
left  them  behind  me  on  the  road  of  life  ;  that 
we  were  sundered,  irrevocably  cut  loose  from 
all  possible  connection.  But  such  ties  are  not 
to  be  snapped  so  easily.  They  found  me,  you 
see,  and  they  will  find  me  again— 

"Never!"  exclaimed  her  husband.  "They 
are  as  dead  to  you  as  if  the  grave  had  swal- 
lowed them.  I  have  taken  care  of  that." 

"  But  the  shame  !  you  have  not  taken  care 
of  that.  That  exists  and  must,  and  while  it 
does  I  remain  where  I  can  meet  it  alone.  I 
love  you  ;  God's  sun  is  not  dearer  to  my  eyes  ; 
but  I  will  never  cross  your  threshold  as  your 
wife  till  the  opprobrium  can  be  cut  loose  from 
my  skirts,  and  the  shadow  uplifted  from  my 
brow.  A  queen  with  high  thoughts  in  her  eyes 
and  brave  hopes  in  her  heart  were  not  too  good 
to  enter  that  door  with  you.  Shall  a  girl  who 
has  lived  three  weeks  in  an  atmosphere  of  such 
crime  and  despair,  that  these  rooms  have  often 
seemed  to  me  the  gate-way  to  hell,  carry  there 
even  in  secrecy,  the  effects  of  that  atmosphere  ? 
I  will  cherish  your  goodness  in  my  heart  but 


260  Love  and  Duty. 

do  not  ask  me  to  bury  that  heart  in  any  more 
exalted  spot,  than  some  humble  country  home, 
where  my  life  may  be  spent  in  good  deeds  and 
my  love  in  prayers  for  the  man  I  hold  dear,  and 
because  I  hold  dear,  leave  to  his  own  high  path 
among  the  straight  and  unshadowed  courses  of 
the  world." 

And  with  a  gesture  that  inexorably  shut  him 
off  while  it  expressed  the  most  touching  appeal, 
she  glided  by  him  and  took  her  way  to  the 
room  where  her  father  and  brother  awaited  her 
presence. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

EXPLANATIONS. 

I  CANNOT  endure  this,"  came  in  one 
burst  of  feeling  from  the  lips  of  Mr. 
Blake.  "  She  don't  know,  she  don't  realize — 
Sir,"  cried  he,  suddenly  becoming  conscious  of 
my  presence  in  the  room,  "  will  you  be  good 
enough  to  see  that  this  note,"  he  hastily  scrib- 
bled one,  "  is  carried  across  the  way  to  my 
house  and  given  to  Mrs.  Daniels." 

I  bowed  assent,  routed  up  one  of  the  men  in 
the  next  room  and  despatched  it  at  once. 

"  Perhaps  she  will  listen  to  the  voice  of  one 
of  her  own  sex  if  not  to  me,"  said  he  ;  and 
began  pacing  the  floor  of  the  narrow  room  in 
which  we  were,  with  a  wildness  of  impatience 
that  showed  to  what  depths  had  sunk  the  hope 
of  gaining  this  lovely  woman  for  his  own. 

Feeling  myself  no  longer  necessary  in  that 
261 


262  Explanations. 

spot,  I  followed  where  my  wishes  led  and 
entered  the  room  where  Luttra  was  bidding 
good-bye  to  her  father. 

"  I  shall  never  forget,"  I  heard  her  say  as  I 
crossed  the  floor  to  where  Mr.  Gryce  stood 
looking  out  of  the  window,  "  that  your  blood 
runs  in  my  veins  together  with  that  of  my  gentle- 
hearted,  never-to-be-forgotten  mother.  What- 
ever my  fate  may  be  or  wherever  I  may  hide 
the  head  you  have  bowed  to  the  dust,  be  sure 
I  shall  always  lift  up  my  hands  in  prayer  for 
your  repentance  and  return  to  an  honest  life. 
God  grant  that  my  prayers  may  be  heard  and 
that  I  may  yet  receive  at  your  hands,  a  father's 
kindly  blessing." 

The  only  answer  to  this  was  a  heavily  mut- 
tered growl  that  gave  but  little  promise  of  any 
such  peaceful  termination  to  a  deeply  vicious 
life.  Hearing  it,  Mr.  Gryce  hastened  to  pro- 
cure his  men  and  remove  the  hardened  wretches 
from  the  spot.  All  through  the  preparations 
for  their  departure,  she  stood  and  watched  their 
sullen  faces  with  a  wild  yearning  in  her  eye  that 
could  scarcely  be  denied,  but  when  the  door 
finally  closed  upon  them,  and  she  was  left  stand- 


Explanations.  263 

ing  there  with  no  one  in  the  room  but  myself, 
she  steadied  herself  up  as  one  who  is  conscious 
that  all  the  storms  of  heaven  are  about  to  break 
upon  her ;  and  turning  slowly  to  the  doori 
waited  with  arms  crossed  and  a  still  determina- 
tion upon  her  brow,  the  coming  of  the  feet  of 
him  whose  resolve  she  felt  must  have,  as  yet 
been  only  strengthened  by  her  resistance. 

She  had  not  long  to  wait.  Almost  with  the 
closing  of  the  street  door  upon  the  detectives 
and  their  prisoners,  Mr.  Blake  followed  by 
Mrs.  Daniels  and  another  lady  whose  thick  veil 
and  long  cloak  but  illy  concealed  the  patrician 
features  and  stately  form  of  the  Countess  De 
Mirac,  entered  the  room. 

The  surprise  had  its  effect ;  Luttra  was  evi- 
dently for  the  moment  thrown  off  her  guard. 

"  Mrs.  Daniels  !  "  she  breathed,  holding  out 
her  hands  with  a  longing  gesture. 

"My  dear  mistress !  "  returned  that  good 
woman,  taking  those  hands  in  hers  but  in  a  re- 
spectful way  that  proved  the  constraint  imposed 
upon  her  by  Mr.  Blake's  presence.  "  Do  I  see 
you  again  and  safe  ?  " 

"  You  must  have  thought  I  cared  little  for 


264  Explanations* 

the  anxiety  you  would  be  sure  to  feel,"  said 
that  fair  young  mistress,  gazing  with  earnest- 
ness into  the  glad  but  tearful  eyes  of  the  house- 
keeper. "  But  indeed,  I  have  been  in  no  po- 
sition to  communicate  with  you,  nor  could  I  do 
so  without  risking  that  to  protect  which  I  so 
outraged  my  feelings  as  to  leave  the  house  at 
all.  I  mean  the  life  and  welfare  of  its  master, 
Mrs.  Daniels." 

"  Ha,  what  is  that  ? "  quoth  Mr.  Blake. 
"  It  was  to  save  me,  you  consented  to  follow 
them  ?  " 

"  Yes  ;  what  else  would  have  led  me  to  such 
an  action?  They  might  have  killed  me,  I  would 
not  have  cared,  but  when  they  began  to  utter 
threats  against  you— 

"  Mrs.  Blake,"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Daniels,  catch- 
ing hold  of  her  mistress's  uplifted  hand,  and 
pointing  to  a  scar  that  slightly  disfigured  her 
white  arm  a  little  above  the  wrist,  "  Mrs.  Blake, 
what's  that  ?  " 

A  pink  flush,  the  first  I  had  seen  on  her 
usually  pale  countenance,  rose  for  an  instant  to 
her  cheeks,  and  she  seemed  to  hesitate. 

"  It  was  not  there  when  I  last  saw  you,  Mrs. 
Blake." 


Explanations.  265 

"  No,"  was  the  slow  reply,  "  I  found  myself 
forced  that  night  to  inflict  upon  myself  a  little 
wound.  It  is  nothing,  let  it  go." 

"  No,  Luttra  I  cannot  let  it  go,"  said  her 
husband,  advancing  towards  her  with  something 
like  gentle  command.  "  I  must  hear  not  only 
about  this  but  all  the  other  occurrences  of  that 
night.  How  came  they  to  find  you  in  the  refuge 
you  had  attained  ?  " 

"  I  think,"  said  she  in  a  low  tone  the  underly- 
ing suffering  of  which  it  would  be  hard  to  des- 
cribe, "  that  it  was  not  to  seek  me  they  first 
invaded  your  house.  They  had  heard  you  were 
a  rich  man,  and  the  sight  of  that  ladder  running 
up  the  side  of  the  new  extension  was  too  much 
for  them.  Indeed  I  know  that  it  was  for  pur- 
poses of  robbery  they  came,  for  they  had  hired 
this  room  opposite  you  some  days  previous 
to  making  the  attempt.  You  see  they  were 
almost  destitute  of  money  and  though  they 
had  some  buried  in  the  cellar  of  the  old  house 
in  Vermont,  they  dared  not  leave  the  city  to 
procure  it.  My  brother  was  obliged  to  do  so 
later,  however.  It  was  a  surprise  to  them 
seeing  me  in  your  house.  They  had  reached 


266  Explanations. 

the  roof  of  the  extension  and  were  just  lifting  up 
the  corner  of  the  shade  I  had  dropped  across 
the  open  window — I  always  open  my  window 
a  few  minutes  before  preparing  to  retire— when 
I  rose  from  the  chair  in  which  I  had  been  brood- 
ing, and  turned  up  the  gas.  I  was  combing  my 
hair  at  the  time  and  so  of  course  they  recog- 
nized me.  Instantly  they  gave  a  secret  signal 
I,  alas,  remembered  only  too  well,  and  crouching 
back,  bade  me  put  out  the  light  that  they  might 
enter  with  safety.  I  was  at  first  too  much 
startled  to  realize  the  consequences  of  my  act- 
tion,  and  with  some  vague  idea  that  they  had 
discovered  my  retreat  and  come  for  purposes  of 
advice  or  assistance,  I  did  what  they  bid.  Im- 
mediately they  threw  back  the  shade  and  came 
in,  their  huge  figures  looming  frightfully  in  the 
faint  light  made  by  a  distant  gas  lamp  in  the 
street  below.  '  What  do  you  want  ? '  were  my 
first  words  uttered  in  a  voice  I  scarcely  recog- 
nized for  my  own,  '  why  do  you  steal  on  me 
like  this  in  the  night  and  through  an  open 
window  fifty  feet  from  the  ground  ?  Are'nt 
you  afraid  you  will  be  discovered  and  sent  back 
to  the  prison  from  which  you  have  escaped?' 


Explanations.  267 

Their  reply  sent  a  chill  through  my  blood  and 
awoke  me  to  a  realization  of  what  I  had  done  in 
thus  allowing  two  escaped  convicts  to  enter  a, 
house  not  my  own.  '  We  want  money  and 
we're  not  afraid  of  anything  now  you  are  here.' 
And  without  heeding  my  exclamation  of  hor- 
ror, they  coolly  told  me  that  they  would  wait 
where  they  were  till  the  household  was  asleep, 
when  they  would  expect  me  to  show  them  the 
way  to  the  silver  closet  or  what  was  better,  the 
safe  or  wherever  it  was  Mr.  Blake  kept  his 
money.  I  saw  they  took  me  for  a  servant,  as 
indeed  I  was,  and  for  some  minutes  I  managed 
to  preserve  that  position  in  their  eyes.  But 
when  in  a  sudden  burst  of  rage  at  my  refusal 
to  help  them,  they  pushed  me  aside  and  hurri- 
ed to  the  door  with  the  manifest  intention  of 
going  below,  I  forgot  prudence  in  my  fears  and 
uttered  some  wild  appeal  to  them  not  to  do 
injury  to  any  one  in  the  house  for  it  was  my 
husband's.  Of  course  that  disclosure  had  its 
natural  effect. 

"They  stopped,  but  only  to  beset  me  with 
questions  till  the  whole  truth  came  out.  I 
could  not  have  committed  a  worse  folly  than 


Explanations, 

thus  taking  them  into  my  confidence.  Instantly 
the  advantages  to  be  gained  by  using  my  secret 
connection  with  so  wealthy  a  man  for  the  pur- 
pose of  cowering  me  and  blackmailing  him, 
seemed  to  strike  both  their  minds  at  once,  slow 
as  they  usually  are  to  receive  impressions. 
The  silver-closet  and  money-safe  sank  to  a  com- 
paratively insignificant  position  in  their  eyes, 
and  to  get  me  out  of  the  house,  and  with  my 
happiness  at  stake,  treat  with  the  honorable 
man  who  notwithstanding  his  non-approval  of 
me  as  a  woman,  still  regarded  me  as  his  lawfully 
wedded  wife,  became  in  their  eyes  a  thing  of 
such  wonderful  promise  they  were  willing  to 
run  any  and  every  risk  to  test  its  value.  But 
here  to  their  great  astonishment  I  rebelled ; 
astonishment  because  they  could  not  realize  my 
desiring  anything  above  money  and  the  position 
to  which  they  declared  I  was  by  law  entitled. 
In  vain  I  pleaded  my  love ;  in  vain  I  threatened 
exposure  of  their  plans  if  not  whereabouts. 
The  mine  of  gold  which  they  fondly  believed 
they  had  stumbled  upon  unawares,  promised 
too  richly  to  be  easily  abandoned.  '  You  must 
go  with  us,'  said  they,  'if  not  peaceably  then  by 


Explanations.  269 

force,'  and  they  actually  advanced  upon  me,  up- 
setting a  chair  and  tearing  down  one  of  the 
curtains  to  which  I  clung.     It  was  then  I  com- 
mitted  that  little   act    concerning   which   you 
questioned  me.     I  wanted  to  show  them  I  was 
not  to  be  moved  by  threats  of  that  character ; 
that  I  did  not  even  fear  the  shedding  of  my 
blood  ;    and  that  they  would  only  be  wasting 
their  time  in  trying  to  sway  me  by  hints  of  per- 
sonal  violence.     And  they   were   a   little  im- 
pressed, sufficiently  so  at  least  to  turn  their 
threats  in  another  direction,  awakening  fears 
at  last  which  I  .could  not  conceal,  much  as  I  felt 
it  would  be  policy  to  do  so.     Gathering  up  a 
few  articles  I  most  prized,  my  wedding  ring, 
Mr.  Blake,  and  a  photograph  of  yourself  that 
Mrs.  Daniels  had  been  kind  enough  to  give 
me,  I  put  on  my  bonnet  and  cloak  and  said  I 
would  go  with  them,  since  they  persisted  in  re- 
quiring it.     The  fact  is  I  no  longer  possessed 
motive  or  strength  to  resist.     Even  your  unex- 
pected appearance  at  the  door,  Mrs.  Daniels, 
offered   no   prospect    of   hope.       Arouse   the 
house  ?  what  would  that  do  ?  only  reveal  my 
cherished  secret  and  perhaps  jeopardize  the  life 


2  jo  Expla  nations. 

of  my  husband.  Besides,  they  were  my  own 
near  kin,  remember,  and  so  had  some  little 
claim  upon  my  consideration,  at  least  to  the 
point  of  my  not  personally  betraying  them  un- 
less they  menaced  immediate  and  actual  harm. 
The  escape  by  the  window  which  would  have 
been  a  difficult  task  for  most  women  to  per- 
form, was  easy  enough  for  me.  I  was  brought 
up  to  wild  ways  you  know,  and  the  descent  of 
a  ladder  forty  feet  long  was  a  comparatively 
trivial  thing  for  me  to  accomplish.  It  was  the 
tearing  away  from  a  life  of  silent  peace,  the  re- 
entrance  of  my  soul  into  an  atmosphere  of  sin 
and  deadly  plotting,  that  was  the  hard  thing,  the 
difficult  dreadful  thing  which  hung  weights  to 
my  feet,  and  made  me  well  nigh  mad.  And  it 
was  this  which  at  the  sight  of  a  policeman  in 
the  street  led  me  to  make  an  effort  to  escape. 
But  it  was  not  successful.  Though  I  was  for- 
tunate enough  to  free  myself  from  the  grasp  of 
my  father  and  brother,  I  reached  the  gate  on 

• street  only  to  encounter  the  eyes  of  him 

whose  displeasure  I  most  feared,  looking  sternly 
upon  me  from  the  other  side.  The  shock  was 
too  much  for  me  in  my  then  weak  and  unnerved 


Explanations.  27* 

condition.  Without  considering  anything  but 
the  fact  that  he  never  had  known  and  never 
must,  that  I  had  been  in  the  same  house  with 
him  for  so  long,  I  rushed  back  to  the  corner 
and  into  the  arms  of  the  men  who  awaited  me. 
How  you  came  to  be  there,  Mr.  Blake,  or  why 
you  did  not  open  the  gate  and  follow,  I  cannot 
say." 

"  The  gate  was  locked,"  returned  tjpat  gentle- 
man. "  You  remember  it  closes  with  a  spring, 
and  can  only  be  opened  by  means  of  a  key 
which  I  did  not  have." 

"  My  father  had  it,"  she  murmured ;  "  he  spent 
a  whole  week  in  the  endeavor  to  get  hold  of  it, 
and  finally  succeeded  on  the  evening  of  the  very 
day  he  used  it  It  was  left  in  the  lock  I 
believe." 

"  So  much  for  servants,"  I  whispered  to 
myself. 

"  The  next  morning,"  continued  she,  "  they 
put  the  case  very  plainly  before  me.  I  was  at 
liberty  to  return  at  once  to  my  home  if  I  would 
promise  to  work  in  their  interest  by  making 
certain  demands  upon  you  as  your  wife.  All 
they  wanted,  said  they,  was  a  snug  little  sum 


272  Explanations. 

and  a  lift  out  of  the  country.  If  I  would  se- 
cure them  these,  they  would  trouble  me  no 
more.  But  I  could  not  concede  to  anything  of 
that  nature,  of  course,  and  the  consequence 
was  these  long  weeks  of  imprisonment  and 
suspense  ;  weeks  that  I  do  not  now  begrudge, 
seeing  they  have  brought  me  the  assurance 
of  your  esteem  and  the  knowledge,  that  wher- 
ever I  go,  your  thoughts  will  follow  me  with 
compassion  if  not  with  love." 

And  having  told  her  story  and  thus  an- 
swered his  demands,  she  assumed  once  more 
the  position  of  lofty  reserve  that  seemed  to 
shut  him  back  from  advance  like  a  wall  of  in- 
vincible crystal. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  BOND   THAT  UNITES. 

BUT  he  was  not  to  be  discouraged.  "  And 
after  all  this,  after  all  you  have  suffered 
for  my  sake  and  your  own,  do  you  think  you 
have  a  right  to  deny  me  the  one  desire  of  my 
heart?  How  can  you  reconcile  it  with  your 
ideas  of  devotion,  Luttra?  " 

"  My  ideas  of  devotion  look  beyond  the 
present,  Mr.  Blake.  It  is  to  save  you  from 
years  of  wearing  anxiety  that  I  consent  to  the 
infliction  upon  you  of  a  passing  pang." 

He  took  a  bold  step  forward.  "  Luttra,  you 
do  not  know  a  man's  heart.  To  lose  you  now 
would  not  merely  inflict  a  passing  pang,  but 
sow  the  seeds  of  a  grief  that  would  go  with  me 
to  the  grave." 

"  Do  you  then " — she  began,  but  paused 
blushing.  Mrs.  Daniels  took  the  opportunity 
to  approach  her  on  the  other  side. 

273 


274  ^^  Bond  that  Unites. 

"  My  dear  mistress,"  said  she,  "  you  are 
wrong  to  hold  out  in  this  matter."  And  her 
manner  betrayed  something  of  the  peculiar 
agitation  that  had  belonged  to  it  in  the  former 
times  of  her  secret  embarassment.  "I,  who 
have  honored  the  family  which  I  have  so  long 
served,  above  every  other  in  the  land,  tell  you 
that  you  can  do  it  no  greater  good  than  to  join 
it  now,  or  inflict  upon  it  any  greater  harm  than 
to  wilfully  withdraw  yourself  from  the  position 
in  which  God  has  placed  you." 

"  And  I,"  said  another  voice,  that  of  the 
Countess  de  Mirac,  who  up  to  this  time  had 
held  herself  in  the  background,  but  who  now 
came  forward  and  took  her  place  with  the  rest, 
"  I,  who  have  borne  the  name  of  Blake,  and 
who  am  still  the  proudest  of  them  all  at  heart, 
I,  the  Countess  de  Mirac,  cousin  to  your  hus- 
band there,  repeat  what  this  good  woman  has 
said,  and  in  holding  out  my  hand  to  you,  ask 
you  to  make  my  cousin  happy  and  his  family 
contented  by  assuming  that  position  in  his 
household  which  the  law  as  well  as  his  love 
accords  you." 

The  girl  looked  at  the  daintily  gloved  hand 


The  Bond  that  Unites.  27 5 

held  out  to  her,  colored  faintly,  and  put  her 
own  within  it. 

"  I  thank  you  for  your  goodness,"  said  she, 
surveying  with  half-sad,  half-admiring  glances, 
the  somewhat  pale  face  of  the  beautiful  bru- 
nette. 

"  And  you  will  yield  to  our  united  requests?" 

She  cast  her  eye  down  at  the  spot  where  her 
father  and  brother  had  cowered  in  their  shack- 
les, and  shook  her  head.  "  I  dare  not,"  said 
she. 

Immediately  Mrs.  Daniels,  whose  emotion 
had  been  increasing  every  moment  since  she 
last  spoke,  plunged  her  hand  into  her  bosom 
and  drew  out  a  folded  paper. 

"  Mrs.  Blake,"  said  she,  "  if  you  could  be  con- 
vinced that  what  I  have  told  you  was  true,  and 
that  you  would  be  irretrievably  injuring  your 
husband  and  his  interests,  by  persisting  in  that 
desertion  of  him  which  you  purpose,  would 
you  not  consent  to  reconsider  your  determina- 
tion, settled  as  it  appears  to  be  ?  " 

"  If  I  could  be  made  to  see  that,  most  cer- 
tainly," returned  she  in  a  low  voice  whose 
broken  accents  betrayed  at  what  cost  she  re- 
mained true  to  her  resolve.  "  But  I  cannot" 


276  The  Bond  that  Unites. 

"  Perhaps  the  sight  of  this  paper  will  help 
you,"  said  she.  And  turning  to  Mr.  Blake  she 
exclaimed,  "  Your  pardon  for  what  I  am  called 
upon  to  do.  A  duty  has  been  laid  upon  me 
which  I  cannot  avoid,  hard  as  it  is  for  an  old 
servant  to  perform.  This  paper — but  it  is  no 
more  than  just  that  you,  sir,  should  see  and 
read  it  first."  And  with  a  hand  that  quivered 
with  fear  or  some  equally  strong  emotion,  she 
put  it  in  his  clasp. 

The  exclamation  that  rewarded  the  act  made 
us  all  start  forward.  "  My  father's  hand' 
writing !  "  were  his  words. 

"  Executed  under  my  eye,"  observed  Mrs. 
Daniels. 

His  glance  ran  rapidly  down  the  sheet  and 
rested  upon  the  final  signature. 

"  Why  has  this  been  kept  from  me  ?  "  de- 
manded he,  turning  upon  Mrs.  Daniels  with 
sternness. 

"  Your  father  so  willed  it,"  was  her  reply. 
"'For  a  year'  was  his  command,  'you  shall 
keep  this  my  last  will  and  testament  which  I 
give  into  your  care  with  my  dying  hands,  a 
secret  from  the  world.  At  the  expiration  of 


The  Bond  that  Unites.  277 

that  time  mark  if  my  son's  wife  sits  at  the 
head  of  her  husband's  table  ;  if  she  does  and  is 
khappy,  suppress  this  by  deliberately  giving  it  to 
the  flames,  but  if  from  any  reason  other  than 
death,  she  is  not  seen  there,  carry  it  at  once  to 
my  son,  and  bid  him  as  he  honors  my  memory, 
to  see  that  my  wishes  as  there  expressed  are 
at  once  carried  out.' " 

The  paper  in  Mr.  Blake's  hand  fluttered. 
"  You  are  aware  what  those  wishes  are  ? " 
said  he. 

"  I   steadied  his  hand  while  he  wrote,"  was 
her  sad  and  earnest  reply. 

Mr.  Blake  turned  with  a  look  of  inexpressible 
deference  to  his  wife. 

"  Madame,"  said  he  "  when  I  urged  you  with 
such  warmth  to  join  your  fate  to  mine  and  hon- 
or my  house  by  presiding  over  it,  I  thought  I 
was  inviting  you  to  share  the  advantages  of 
wealth  as  well  as  the  love  of  a  lonely  man's 
heart.  This  paper  undeceives  me.  Luttra,  the 
daughter-in-law  of  Abner  Blake,  not  Holman, 
his  son,  is  the  one  who  by  the  inheritance  of 
his  millions  has  the  right  to  command  in  this 
presence." 


278  The  Bond  that   Unites. 

With  a  cry  she  took  from  him  the  will  whose 
purport  was  thus  briefly  made  known.  "  O, 
how  could  he,  how  could  he  ?  "  exclaimed  she, 
running  her  eye  down  the  sheet,  and  then 
crushing  it  spasmodically  to  her  breast.  "  Did 
he  not  realize  that  he  could  do  me  no  greater 
wrong?  "  Then  in  one  yielding  up  of  her 
whole  womanhood  to  the  mighty  burst  of  pas- 
sion that  had  been  flooding  the  defenses  of  her 
heart  for  so  long,  she  exclaimed  in  a  voice  the 
mingled  rapture  and  determination  of  which 
rings  in  my  ears  even  now,  "  And  is  it  a  thing 
like  this  with  its  suggestions  of  mercenary  in- 
terest that  shall  bridge  the  gulf  that  separates 
you  and  me  ?  Shall  the  giving  or  the  gaining 
of  a  fortune  make  necessary  the  unital  of  lives 
over  which  holier  influences  have  beamed  and 
loftier  hopes  shone  ?  No,  no  ;  by  the  smile 
with  which  your  dying  father  took  me  to  his 
breast,  love  alone,  with  the  hope  and  confidence 
it  gives,  shall  be  the  bond  to  draw  us  together 
and  make  of  the  two  separate  planes  on  which 
we  stand,  a  common  ground  where  we  can 
meet  and  be  happy." 

And  with  one  supreme  gesture  she  tore  into 


The  Bond  that  Unites.  279 

pieces  the  will  which  she  held,   and   sank  all 
aglow  with  woman's  divinest  joy  into  the  arms 

held  out  to  receive  her. 
##*##* 

I  was  present  at  the  wedding-reception  given 
them  by  the  Countess  De  Mirac  in  her  elegant 
apartments  at  the  Windsor.  I  never  saw  a 
happier  bride,  nor  a  husband  in  whose  eyes 
burned  a  deeper  contentment.  To  all  questions 
as  to  who  this  extraordinary  woman  could  be, 
where  she  was  found,  and  in  what  place  and  at 
what  time  she  was  married,  the  Countess  had 
apt  replies  whose  art  of  hushing  curiosity  with- 
out absolutely  satisfying  it,  was  one  of  the 
tokens  she  yet  preserved,  of  her  short  sway  as 
grand  lady,  in  the  gayest  and  most  hollow  city 
of  the  world. 

As  I  prepared  to  leave  a  scene  perhaps  the 
most  gratifying  in  many  respects  that  I  had 
ever  witnessed,  I  felt  a  slight  touch  on  my  arm. 
It  came  from  Mrs.  Blake  who  with  her  hus- 
band had  crossed  the  room  to  bid  me  farewell. 

"  Will  you  allow  me  to  thank  you,"  said  she, 
"  for  the  risk  you  ran  for  me  one  day  and  of 
which  I  have  just  heard.  It  was  an  act  that 


280  The  Bond  that   Unites. 

merits  the  gratitude  of  years,  and  as  such  shall 
be  always  remembered  by  me.  If  the  old 
French  artist  with  the  racking  cough  ever  de- 
sires a  favor  at  my  hands,  let  him  feel  free  to 
.ask  it.  The  interest  I  experienced  in  him  in 
the  days  of  my  trouble,  will  suffer  no  abatement 
in  these  of  my  joy  and  prosperity."  And  with 
a  look  that  was  more  than  words,  she  gave 
me  a  flower  from  the  bouquet  she  held  in  her 
hand,  and  smilingly  withdrew. 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


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